The Deadman's Hand
by mabelreid
Summary: When a desperate William Reid reaches out to Spencer for help, the team must return to Las Vegas. This time, what happens in Vegas may not stay there.
1. Prologue

William Reid stood looking out of his office window into the bright afternoon sunshine. The golden light mingled with black shadows from the office park's buildings. He studied the shadows, trying to keep his eyes off the sheaf of paper on his desk. Spencer knew shadows. William had seen them in his eyes. How familiar had his son become with the dark side of life.

He sighed and turned back to his desk. The pile of papers sitting in the center of his green desk blotter mocked him. Only three sheets of paper waited for his decision, as they sat there in the late afternoon light. Perhaps he didn't need to rely on the relative slowness of the postal service. May there was another way. He could just call Spencer and ask him for help.

He sighed again and pulled his phone out of him pocket. He looked at the keypad, remembering the day a few months ago when he'd decided to call Spencer just to say hello.

_Saturday morning often found him studying briefs while Mrs. Cooper cleaned for him. He could hear the vacuum running around in his bedroom down the hall. The sound was oddly comforting as he usually lived in the silence that always accompanied those who live alone. _

_He pushed back from his desk, unable to stop thinking about his son. Six months had passed since the truth about Riley Jenkins' death had come out for better or worse. He'd written to Spencer several times, and had one short note back in acknowledgement. It had been about as warm as an answer to a catalog order, but William couldn't blame him. It's not as if William had tried to fix their relationship. _

_He pushed the speed dial he'd programmed in when Spencer had given him his number, a bit grudgingly, as William had recalled. Of course, he couldn't blame his son. He'd never done anything to warrant anything more then the brush off from Spencer. _

_The phone rang and his heart began to race. His head felt like it would explode as it pounded in time with the beating of his heart. _

"_Hello Dad!"_

_His breath caught in his throat. He lost the ability to speak. _

"_Spencer…"_

"_Who did you think it would be Dad?"_

"_I'm just surprised… I didn't think you'd-" _

"_That I would what… Answer if I saw your name on my caller ID. I'm busy dad! We're in the middle of a case right now. What do you want?"_

"_I'm sorry… I was thinking about you and wanted to know how you're doing." _

"_I said I'm busy…"_

"_Right… Well, I hope you're okay son. Stay safe." _

"_Not that you care… Father!" _

_The contempt in his son's voice cut him to the core. The pain made his heart race. "I'm sorry son. I didn't mean to bother you." _

"_Good-bye Dad!" _

_The connection broke suddenly as though someone had cut the line. Well… He had more then he expected with that small conversation. At least Spencer hadn't hung up on him or ignored the call altogether. It was a start._

_William pulled out his phone and stared at it. How do you ask for help from the son you abandoned to life with a mentally challenged mother? He pushed the button anyway and listened as it went straight to voice mail. _

"_Spencer… It's your dad. I know I don't have the right to ask, but I really need your help. I'm into something big and it's attracted the attention of the wrong people. I know you're busy, son. Please just call me back if you can before five pm. I'll let you know a safe place for us to meet and talk." _

_He hung up the phone and went back to his desk. He'd send the letter off just in case his son decided to ignore his call. He might be on an important case that he couldn't leave. William knew he'd have to be patient. _

_He picked up the letter and slipped it inside a brown manila envelope with Spencer's name written on the outside. He packed up his briefcase and took the envelope out to his secretary. _

"_Charlotte… I know you're headed out early but I really need you to get this sent overnight mail to this address." He handed her the envelope and a slip of paper with Spencer's address at Quantico written on it. _

_Charlotte gave him a long-suffering stare. "I really have to get to my niece's piano recital across town." _

"_I really owe you one." He said with a smile even though a smile was the last thing he felt like giving at that moment. _

"_Alright… I'll get it to the post office." _

"_Thank… I've been called away. I may not be here for the whole week. Why don't you take the next week off? With pay of course," He said to her narrowing of her eyes. _

"_Is anything wrong boss?" _

"_No!" He said a bit loudly. "I mean, I just have to see to something in Reno." He said thinking fast. "I'll call you when I'm on my way back." _

"_Okay…" She didn't sound convinced and her mouth had pulled down in a worried frown._

"_Don't worry Charlotte… I just have to see to something important." _

"_Okay." _

_He watched her collect her purse and leave. He managed another smile for her when she turned back one last time. Her coffee colored eyes didn't believe he'd be okay. He wasn't sure himself especially if he didn't get help from his son._

_He locked up the office, wondering if he'd ever see it again. He wondered if he'd ever see Spencer or Diana again. He wondered how he had got into this whole mess in the first place. _

_-----_

_Music blared over the shouting and catcalls from the audience around the u-shaped dance floor. He watched intently as his favorite buxom blond pulled off her tiny sliver micro skirt. Her long tanned legs brought her closer to where he sat with several bills in his hand. He drank off the last of the whiskey in his glass and leered up at her light blue eyes. _

_She moved in as close as the law would allow, pushing her large upturned breasts in his face. She smelled like strawberries as he shoved the bills into her g-string. She smirked at him with scarlet painted lips. "Thanks honey," She said._

_His phone vibrated in his pocket as she swayed in front of him like a snake commanded by a charmer. "Damn it!" He shouted. _

_He pushed out of his chair as he pulled his phone out of his jeans pocket. "This better be good." He said. His voice drowned out by the shouting and cheering of the crowd. Her routine had nearly finished and he had a voucher for a private lap dance with her. Now, because of his damn phone, someone else would get first crack at the bitch. _

"_What?" He barked into the phone as he pushed past the crowd made up of mostly men of all ages and a few women. _

_The smell of sweat, cigarette smoke and alcohol swirled around him all the way to the door. "Hey Bill, where ya goin' so fast." The bouncer called after him. _

_He ignored the bouncer and took the finger out of his ear he'd been using to block the noise. "I didn't hear you." He said into the phone._

"_I told you to get out here now. I need you to take care of something for me." _

"_Man… Can't it wait until tomorrow?" He turned left and headed down the street to his car. _

"_No! He's not cooperating. We need to get a hold of what he's got before he goes to the press. The boss wants you to handle it personally."_

"_This time I get paid up front!" _

"_I'm hearing an ultimatum in your voice. You better watch your attitude!" _

"_I want my money up front. One hundred thousand dollars." _

"_I don't want him killed. Just take him out to the Hole. The boss wants him alive." _

"_I want the money in case I have to shut him up. I'm taking a huge chance. This isn't like the others!" _

"_Fine… You'll get the money after you take him to the Hole."_

"_I want -" _

"_Don't push your luck!" _

"_Alright… I'll be there in thirty." _


	2. Opening Move

**_Disclaimer: see my profile. _**

**_Opening Move _**

He woke to complete darkness and a splitting headache. He groaned and turned over. Something tickled at his neck as he put one hand down into something gritty. He moved his hand, feeling something hard and rough under his fingertips.

His eyes felt like someone had thrown sand into them as he opened them. His throat hurt as though he'd been screaming. Something smelled like wet leaves and earth, but he couldn't see anything. It was like looking into the black abyss at the furthest end of the universe.

He shivered and moaned as the shaking of his body jarred some injury to his back and neck. If felt like someone had hit him hard. He lifted his hand to his head and felt the lump under his hair at the back of his head.

_What the hell?_

His right arm ached as he tried to push up to a standing position. He pushed against what felt like dirt under his fingers as his legs straightened. He swayed and took a step forward, feeling hard stones and pebbles on his toes. Someone had taken his shoes. Something shifted behind him and he froze with his arms outstretched. He waited, hearing his breath rush in and out of his lungs in the black silence. He held out his hands as he took another tentative step in what he hoped was a straight line. Nothing happened, so he stepped forward, one two, three. His fingers brushed against a solid barrier. He jumped as something fell to the ground. It sounded like dirt rolling down a hillside.

He turned around, put his back to the 'wall', and tried to get his breath. His side hurt every time he drew breath and the pain would not let him stand up straight.

"Is anyone there?" He suddenly asked the deep darkness that surrounded him.

Nothing answered his call. He held out his hands, which shook. Gooseflesh leapt out on his arms, which he realized were as bare as his feet and so were his legs. Who had taken every stitch of clothes but his boxers from him? Where was he?

"Hello…" He croaked over a very dry throat. "Is someone there?"

Only silence answered back and it didn't have anything interesting to say as he began to walk back across the void. It made him think of "The Pit and The Pendulum." He shivered again, holding his hands out. Five paces had him running into another wall. He stood there breathing in the smell of dirt and decay, trying not to panic.

He decided to follow the 'wall,' and see where it went. He walked forward, trailing his hand along the dirt and pebbles. This time he only took four steps before running into another wall. His prison was tiny. He began to breathe in gasps…

_NO!_

He stood up as straight as he could against the pain in his back and ribs. He wouldn't give in to the urge to panic. His enemies must have brought him here. If he waited, they'd come back. They had to come back!

"Quit hiding…" He shouted as bravely as he could.

Something creaked over his head, back and forth. It sounded like someone walking on an old floor. He reached up his hands over his head looking straight up. There was a bit a very yellow light in a square above him, but it was too weak to illuminate this 'room,' in which he'd been enclosed.

"Someone talk to me." He shouted as loudly as he could.

The silence dragged out for what seemed to be an hour, but was probably only a couple of minutes before the creaking stopped and the square lifted away on squeaking hinges that sounded full of dirt. A bright light shone down blinding him. He turned his face away as a familiar silken voice spoke.

"I hope you like your new home."

"I won't give you what you want! He said, coughing over his parched throat.

William Reid lifted his fingers and tried to look through the light to the face above it. His eyes stung and watered though, so he had to close them as the man laughed. Something was tossed down to him. It barely missed his head as it fell to the floor with a clunk.

"You better make it last because it's all your getting for today. Can't have you starving or dying of thirst before the funs over."

"Wait, I want to talk you. You don't have to do this. It wasn't my fault. I didn't have anything to do with what happened."

The door in the ceiling closed, dropping him into nearly complete darkness once again. He dropped to his knees shifting uncomfortably on the soft dirt. His fingers brushed over something that felt like plastic. He pulled on it and it fell over. He grunted in frustration, pulling forward on his stomach until his hands found the cold plastic container. He ran his hands over it until his fingers found the hard plastic of the cap.

The icy water ran out of the bottle as he sucked on the sweetest tasting liquid he'd ever had in his life. He forced himself to stop after just a few swallows. He only had that one bottle he discovered as his hand encountered another plastic container. He pulled it open with a frustrated cry. Something that felt and smelled like bread made his stomach growl. He nearly screamed in rage when he found just one big chunk in the container.

"Bread and water isn't very creative." He yelled up at the square over his head.

No one spoke in reply to his taunt. He listened hard, ignoring the bread even though he stomach ached with hunger.

"Are you up there? "

Silence reigned over the darkness, like a medieval king over his terrified subjects. Nothing creaked overhead and for just an instant William thought, he had imagined all of it. His fingers brushed the bottle of water and he knew it had been real.

Did Spencer have his call for help yet? How much time had passed? He had to think of something to do to get out of this in case his son decided not to try to help him.

The man sat behind his antique fire mahogany wood desk. The red of the wood appealed to him. It warmed the room and made a statement to everyone that came into the room. He shut the file folder his assistant had given him and sighed. He had an entire company to run which took up too much of his time now that he had this new 'project' to work on.

He looked at the old black and white photograph in a silver frame on his desk. The face staring back at him from the picture had the blood raging into his face and pushing ice into his stomach.

"I have the last piece of the puzzle to complete our revenge." He told the face. "All of them will get what's coming to them soon."

He picked up the phone and hit the speed dial marked one on his phone. "It's me!" He said to the voice on the other end. "Put the next part of the plan into motion."

The envelope looked innocent, but had to be checked out before it could be given to its addressee. Warren Billings turned it over looking closely for any tampering or surprises. He put it through the x-ray machine, waiting as the picture formed before him on the screen.

The x-ray revealed only a few sheets of paper inside the envelope. He couldn't see any obvious threat like poison or explosives. None of the chemical tests had turned up anything amiss either. He added it to Dr. Reid's pile of mail. The agent would get the overnight letter unopened as the rules had relaxed since the anthrax scare in 2001.

"Hey Warren…"

Lucy Adams hollered at him from over the document she processed for prints. "You ever heard of taking a lunch break."

He felt his face go hot. Lucy had black hair and the darkest eyes he'd ever seen. She said her grandmother was half Iroquois Indian while her grandfather had been Irish American. He thought she was the most beautiful woman in the world, but he couldn't get up the nerve to ask her out. Why would she want someone three inches shorter than her with balding light brown hair and hazel eyes covered by glasses? He forgot all about Dr. Reid's package as she waggled her finger at him.

"Come on Warren… I'm starving and it's your turn to buy me lunch."

Warren rushed up from QD to the sixth floor. He'd nearly forgotten the overnight package for Dr. Reid because of his crush on his lab partner. His boss would read him the riot act if Agent Reid complained. He hopped off the elevator a few minutes later, only to find the bullpen empty but for Agent Anderson, who was hard at work over a thick file folder.

"Have you seen Dr Reid today?" Warren asked.

"They should be back at any minute. They're on their way back from a tiny little town in Oklahoma. Some sheriff's deputy went nuts and started killing and eating people."

Warren shivered. "I don't want to know about it."

Anderson just looked at him. "You work for the FBI and you're squeamish."

"I like to work with documents and paper, not blood and flesh."

The elevator doors opened at that moment as though they'd heard the conversation between Warren and Anderson. Hotch led the others out of the car to the bullpen. "I want all of you to go home after you've filed your reports." He said as he headed for his office.

Warren looked up at the clock. It was going on two pm on a Monday afternoon. The team had been gone since the Thursday before that. They all looked as though the weight of the world lay on their shoulders.

"Dr Reid…" Warren held out the overnight mail envelope. "This came for you."

"Thanks Warren," Reid took the envelope without looking at it and placed it on top of the tottering pile on his desk.

Warren breathed a sigh of relief. It must not be that important if Dr. Reid wasn't tearing into it right away. He left the bullpen and the agents to their paperwork.

Reid pulled out his phone after Warren left and checked his messages. He'd ignored his phone unless it was from Garcia mostly because he didn't want to talk to his dad. He sighed when he scrolled through his calls to find his father's number in the list. In addition, there was a voice mail waiting for him. What if it was his dad? He just couldn't deal with hearing his voice. The case had worn them all down. How did his dad know to call at the precisely wrong time?

"Hey Reid…" Emily said. "Is everything okay?"

He glanced up at her concerned face. "I'm not sure." He answered truthfully.

"Can I help?"

"No… I have to work this out on my own."

He put his phone back into his messenger bag and reached for the overnight folder from the top of his stack. "If I didn't know better," he said to Emily. "I would think that this stack multiplied on its own."

Emily laughed. "I was thinking the same thing about mine."

He opened the envelope without looking at the return address and pulled out the sheaf of papers. As the words passed in front of his eyes, his knees started to feel as though someone had poured oatmeal into his knees.

His heart began thumping in his chest as his eyes swept over the words written in unforgettable handwriting. He dropped down in his chair. The words changed… replaced by words his memory couldn't let him forget no matter how much he wanted to forget them.

_Dear Dianna, _

_You accused me of weakness… You were right! I am a weak man. I can't stay here and watch you deteriorate before my eyes. I can't watch you change from the beautiful, vibrant woman I knew when we first met. I can't live with secrets and lies. _

_Tell Spencer I love him very much. I know he'll hate me for leaving him alone, but I can't take him away from you. I know how much you love him. He'll believe me selfish, and he's right. I am a selfish man that can't take the rift between us anymore. _

_William_

Three sheets of paper fell from his fingers as his eyes began to burn. They couldn't see the words written to him in the most recent letter, because the words written nearly twenty years ago blocked them out completely.

"Reid!"

He could hear Emily's voice, but it was like a badly tuned radio in his ear. His father's voice drowned out everything else. "Spencer… no one cares about obscure facts and statistics from a ten year old."

"Hey man… You okay?"

He wanted to tell Morgan to go away, but his brain couldn't seem to remember how to form the words. His cheeks burned and his stomach churned. How could his father ask him for help? Why would he think Reid would care enough to drop everything? Reid had tried to forgive his dad since they'd finally come to an understanding after the Riley Jenkins case. It was so hard to forget twenty years. How could his father expect that all the hurt would just go away overnight even if Reid wanted it to?

"Reid!" Emily called.

"Hey kid… Talk to me." Morgan said

He looked up at the words he'd heard hundreds of times in the last five years. "Stop calling me that!" He spat out at his friend. "Leave me alone."

He brushed past the bigger man, almost running to the elevator. He could hear voices around him and friends calling out, but it all joined the cacophony in his head. His heart pumped so fast it made his head spin. The elevator doors and the walls seemed to push in and fall out around him as he waited.

"Reid… I didn't mean to make you mad." Morgan was there holding onto his arm.

"Let go of me!"

"What's wrong?"

"I can't stay here. I have to go home."

"Reid!"

"I said… Let go of me!" He shouted.

He yanked his arm out of his hand and stumbled into the elevator doors as they opened. He barely noticed when Morgan didn't follow him. If he could just get out of the office then maybe he could breathe again.

_He turned off the desk lamp and rubbed at his eyes. The clock on the wall read well after two am. He sighed and tried to talk his brain_ _into getting up and going upstairs to bed. She'd be asleep, just like every night. How long had it been since he'd felt like taking her in his arms. He wanted to behave as a husband, but she refused him again and again. _

_His head ached along with his shoulders and upper back. He had court in the morning and he had to get some sleep if he expected to be of any use for his clients. _

_He left his home office and trudged up the stairs to his bedroom. The lights were out of course and he could hear her breathing in her sleep. The room would have been pitch black but for the light seeping in from the doorway. She insisted on blackout curtains on the windows all the time to keep government spies from watching them. _

_He nearly took a step inside, then turned and went down the hallway to Spencer's room. His son's door was open a crack to the hallway and William smiled. Spencer hated sleeping with the door shut for fear of missing something even in his sleep. _

_He opened the door a bit wider and went to sit on the edge of the four-year-old boy's bed. "Sleep well…Daddy loves you very much," He whispered. _

_Spencer suddenly turned over in his sleep so William could see his face in the half-light from the hallway. He looked like any other little boy as he slept, but he wasn't like just any other little boy. He had gifts and abilities that he didn't understand. _

_He pulled the blanket up around Spencer's shoulders and smoothed it out. Dianna had the idea that someone wanted to hurt their little boy. He couldn't believe it though… She often accused others of wanting to harm Spencer. It had happened on and off since, he was a tiny baby. How could he believe her when she had 'cried wolf' so many times? _

_He kissed Spencer's cheek and left him to his dreams. He'd keep a close eye on the boy as he always had and everything would be okay. _

William sat up, opening his eyes to more darkness. He lookedup at where the door in the ceiling had been, but it looked like and sounded like the room above was empty_. _The silence reminded him of the first days he'd spent on his own after leaving Spencer and Dianna.

He shut his eyes and tried to remember the sound of his son's voice. If he could think of some obscure fact Spencer had told him, then maybe it wouldn't feel like he was lost to the world.

_You deserve to be lost! What goes around comes around William Reid. This is your punishment for leaving your son alone with his mentally deficient mother. You get to feel what it's like to be all alone with no hope that your loved one will care enough to come for you. _

He shut out the voice in his head that told him he was getting just what he deserved. He couldn't think about the possibility that Spencer would ignore his plea for help. He'd have to help because his life was on the line too.


	3. Love never Fades

**_Disclaimer: see my profile_**

**_A/n I didn't realize that the site doesn't allow certain characters for scene breaks. So I put in the single line available for the documents here. I hope the breaks stay in place after the updates. Thank you all for your kind reviews and constructive criticism. This chapter should explain more of Reid's reaction to his father's communication_**

**_Love never Fades_**

"Come in…" Hotch called out at the tap on his door.

"Hotch!" Morgan hurried into the room. "We have a bit of a problem."

Hotch sighed, "What is it Morgan?" He sat back in his chair and gave his full attention to the agent.

Morgan rubbed his hand over his baldhead. Ever since Morgan had taken over for him during the Foyet case, he had seen a new control in the agents bearing. That control seemed to be hanging on by a frayed thread.

_Now what?_

"Reid left!" Morgan blurted out suddenly.

Hotch pushed down the annoyance in his gut. Reid never just left in the middle of the day, but lately with his injured leg, he'd had doctor's appointments and PT appointments at odd times. Morgan was well aware of those facts.

"It's not like Reid hasn't been leaving at odd times lately. He has an injury that nearly cost him his leg."

"I know that Hotch. This isn't about a doctor's appointment he forgot. He looked like someone died. "

"Tell me what happened." Hotch forced a calm he couldn't feel in his heart into his voice.

"Warren brought an overnight mail delivery envelope up to him. Reid read it, went white as a sheet and then he just left."

"Did he say anything?"

"No! He just said he had to get out of here. He looked bad Hotch. We should go after him!"

"I'll take care of it."

"But Hotch, don't you think we should -"

"I said… I'll take care of it."

Hotch made his eyes stay on Morgan's until the other man looked away. "If you're done with you report, I need it on my desk before you leave."

"Hotch!"

"I said I'd deal with it Morgan."

Morgan left, coming close to slamming Hotch's door as he stepped out, but not quite following through with it. Hotch sat back in his chair feeling the headache jacking up behind his head.

He pulled out his phone and opened it. Reid's number went straight to voice mail, which sent irritation curdling into his stomach. At this rate, he'd end up with the ulcer his doctor had been threatening him with if he didn't get a handle on his stress.

"Reid… Why did you turn off your phone? Call me back as soon as you get this message."

He slapped the phone shut and went out to the bullpen. He should have Morgan go check out Reid's apartment, but he'd promised Reid he'd trust him after the young agent had made the effort to get clean from his addiction. Perhaps he should go look at the letter his agent had received and find out what had made Reid just leave his desk without telling anyone.

He looked out over the busy bullpen. Everyone was about the tasks except for Morgan and Emily. They stood staring at the envelope on Reid's desk as though it were a snake poised to strike. He met Emily's eyes and she shrugged her shoulders. He raised an eyebrow and she nodded.

Moments later, he'd returned to his desk and Emily was knocking on his door. "Hotch?"

"I want you to go to Reid's apartment and make sure he's okay."

"Why me?"

"Reid confides in you. You've become close friends since Colorado. I think sending Morgan would be a bad idea at this point."

"Are you sure you want me to go barge in on him?"

"He ran out of here without telling anyone where he went. I think that's a cry for help. Don't you?"

She nodded. "I'll go right now."

"Just find out what you can. Don't push too hard."

"I won't," she assured him.

* * *

Reid opened the door to his apartment. He couldn't remember how he'd gotten there. It was probably a good idea he'd taken the train to work and back.

His hands shook badly, as they had when he'd taken his last hit of Dilaudid. He stood just inside the door trying to make his breathing go back to normal. His head felt dizzy as though he'd run all the way home from Quantico at top speed. Pain pounded in his temples like spikes ramming into his brain. For the first time in months, he knew that if he had a syringe and a familiar little glass bottle, he wouldn't hesitate. The sting of the needle and the rush of the drug would wash away the pain.

He rushed into his bedroom and pulled open the doors to the closet. He rummaged through storage containers and through shoeboxes. Nothing… He checked under the bed, in his dresser under a stack of sweater vests. He couldn't find one bottle or syringe. His bathroom, including the tank and the inside of the cabinets were clean. He limped badly by the time he climbed up the stepladder to look inside the cover on the light in the middle of the ceiling. His sweep of the apartment a year ago to get rid of all his stash had truly been effective.

_What are you doing?_

He stopped and stared at the wall opposite the ladder. Yes… What was he doing? Just because his father had set off horrible memories with the letter, was no reason to undo over a year of work.

_If you let your father do this to you, he wins._

He shut the cabinet door and went back to the living room. For once, his inner voice was right. There were other ways to get his mind off his troubles.

* * *

Emily parked her car in the visitor parking at Reid's apartment complex. She sat for a minute looking around the quiet Georgetown neighborhood. He only lived a few blocks from the University, which hadn't surprised her. He loved school almost as much as he loved profiling.

When she reached his door on the third floor, she heard the sweet tones of a single violin from behind the walls. It was difficult to know which person played, but she thought it might come from inside Reid's apartment. Well he liked classical music, so that made sense. At least she knew he was home. Some of the worry knots in her gut smoothed out as she rapped on his door and waited.

He didn't acknowledge her. She knocked again, a little harder and louder this time. No one came to the door. She pounded a third time successfully resisting the urge to yell "I know you're in there." He abruptly opened the door and confronted her.

"I see Hotch sent you after me. Good idea!" He said sarcastically.

"We're worried about you Reid."

"Then by all means why don't you come on in."

He stepped back and she stepped into a painfully neat living room with a huge bookcase as the focal point. The sofa, threadbare and an unfortunate shade of faded green sat against the far wall. A violin sat in an open case on a stand in the far corner of the room as though someone had just been playing. Wait…

"What do you want?"

"Can I sit down for a minute?"

"I don't care."

She sat, "Don't get petulant with me Reid. You just pick up and leave without telling anyone and when we get concerned, you get testy. You know you have to tell Hotch when you have to leave for an emergency. You can't just walk out like that."

"Don't quote regulations to me. I know them better than you do."

"I didn't come here to fight with you."

He stood at the other end of the room next to the door. She ignored the obvious hint and will of her 'host,' so he sat in the ragged burnt orange upholstered easy chair.

"I don't want to talk about it."

"I know…"

"Then go away."

"You can be as mean as you want Reid. I'm not leaving here until you explain yourself. I won't tell anyone unless you want me too."

He leaned forward with his hands hanging down between his knees. "The letter was from my father. It was like deja vu all over again. All I could think about was the letter he wrote to my mother the day he left us for good. He says he needs my help. How can he ask me for help?"

He stood up and began to pace back and forth across the floor like a caged animal. "He sent me some kind of file written in this code we used to use when I was a kid. I made it up Emily. We used to have fun, playing word games and puzzles. Why did he have to throw all that back in my face now? He left me a message on my phone too. He said he's going to Reno and he needs my help with something important. I can't take this. I'm finally get my life back together and he has come back in and ruin everything."

She stood and went to the violin. "How long have you been playing?"

He sighed and his shoulders dropped. "Okay… We'll play the game. I started playing when I was seventeen."

"It's beautiful!"

A ghost of a smile flitted over his face like a butterfly in summer flowers. "My mother bought it for me in a very rare lucid moment. She loved the violin. I was considering getting into music therapy to help her but…" The smile faltered on his lips.

"I heard you playing. You're very good."

"I almost threw it out a dozen times because it reminds me of her, but I kept it every time because it reminds me of her.

"I'm sorry Reid."

"It's not your fault. Can we sit please?"

She followed him back to the couch. "I'm sorry I snapped at you." He said.

"It's okay…"

"I don't know why I'm so upset by all of this. I thought we were okay. I mean… I thought I'd let go of some of the anger. I know I'll never fully forgive him for leaving me alone with my mother. Then I get this plea in the mail and on the phone and I just don't know what to do. Most of me wants to leave him to figure it out on his own."

"But part of you wants to help him because he's your dad and you love him despite him abandoning you."

"I don't love him Emily. That died in me a long time ago."

"I don't believe that Reid."

He sat there staring at her while she watched his face go through pain, anger and a sorrow that made her hands go clammy. "I wish I did." He said softly. "I want to hate him, but I can't especially after what happened last year. When he explained to me what he'd done to keep my mother safe, I felt like I was ten again and everything was the way it was before he left. He's a good man Emily. What he did for Lou Jenkins ate at him. It would've eaten away at me too. Who's to say that I wouldn't have done the same thing?"

"I know you wouldn't have abandoned your family that way."

"You don't know that Emily. Look at what happened to Hotch. He lost his family before Foyet came along because of his devotion to our job. We all have our breaking points Emily."

"I know that Reid. I just don't think you'd leave your family or drive them away."

"It doesn't matter now. I don't want to argue with you about this. I need to find out what's going on with my dad."

"Okay…"

She pulled a large manila envelope out of her bag. "I grabbed this from your desk. I figured you wouldn't want anyone looking through it."

He snatched it out of her hands. "Did you look at it?"

"I only saw a few characters as I was putting it away. I didn't try to read it."

"It's in code." He reminded her. He slapped it down on the battered wooden coffee table. "I have to go to Las Vegas."

* * *

William sat with his back against the dirt walls. The heat from the desert seeped into the darkness, like smoke through brick, in a house fire. Although the sand and pebbles offered protection from the burning sun, it was still warm enough to be uncomfortable.

Sweat plopped off his forehead and onto his bare legs. His water had long ago run out and his tongue felt like sandpaper. He tried to think about anything but the aching thirst in his throat. He had no watch and no light to mark the passage of time, but if felt like weeks since the trap door had opened.

He put back his head and looked up in the direction of the trap door as though he could make it open by sheer force of will. He waited, trying to count off the seconds, but soon lost track of the numbers. If Spencer were here, he'd never lose track of counting the seconds.

He dropped his head and sighed. He'd always been jealous of his son's abilities and talents. It had taken him years and some thousands on therapy to admit that he'd hated the way Dianna and Spencer had lived in their own world She'd always understood their son. He'd only wanted to make Spencer more normal.

"I'm sorry," He whispered in a raspy voice. "I always loved you Spencer."

He had to get out of this so he could try to make it up to Spencer. The son had truly outstripped the father and it was okay. Finally, it was okay.

He jerked in surprise when the trapdoor opened and bright light streamed down into his prison. He squinted away from the voice and a face he couldn't make out.

"I know all your secrets Mr. Reid. I know all about your ex-wife and your son." The voice whispered down to him. "Was it worth it?"

"Touch them and I'll kill you with my bare hands."

"Hmm… That's a lot of emotion for a woman you divorced, and left to rot in an insane asylum, all alone. Didn't you abandon your son when he was ten?"

William didn't respond.

"Just remember that I can get my hands on either of them whenever I want. Why don't you think about that for a while? We'll talk again soon."


	4. Returning to Las Vegas, Again

**_Disclaimer: see my profile_**

**_A/n hey all... Here's the next chapter for my faithful readers. Mucho thanks to my beta, who's helped me overcome massive writers block on this project and pushed me when I might have given up on the idea all together. _**

**_Return to Las Vegas, Again_**

"You can't just go running off to Las Vegas on your own." Emily stood in front of his door blocking his access to the exit.

"I don't want to drag the team out there for a wild goose chase. Don't you see Emily…?" His chocolate eyes pleaded with her. "I can't take the team into this without an invite. I need to see my dad in person and find out what's made him panic like this."

"You said he left you a message on your phone. What did it say?"

"Just that he's in trouble. He wants to meet with me tomorrow. He didn't say where, just that I was to come alone and call him when I get into town."

Emily stepped away from the door. "I think we should tell Hotch."

"Emily… I don't think that -"

She held up a hand to stop them. "Give him and us a chance Reid. The last time you confronted your dad…"

"I know! You don't have to remind me." Anger turned his eyes nearly black. "I've been kicking myself for a year about that. I hated him so much. More than you can possibly imagine. I was willing to think him a murderer and a pedophile."

"He abandoned you with a mentally unstable parent."

"So that gives me the right to accuse him of child rape and murder." He squeaked. "My God Emily, children get abandoned all the time and they don't try to get their fathers arrested for murder."

"You wanted the truth… I won't let you castigate yourself for that."

"You don't understand!"

"No…" She reached out and touched his elbow. "I don't understand. I do know that I know William Reid's son. He'd never hurt anyone on purpose, not even his father. You can hate him. That's okay… You don't have to forgive him. You don't have to help him now. You could decode those documents, forward them onto the police in Las Vegas, and let them deal with it. No one would think the worse of you. You could even include some suggestions for the detectives if you want. Just call your dad and tell him you can't just drop everything for him especially without an invitation from the local LEOs."

He dropped his go bag and let his shoulders slump. "He called me a few weeks ago. We were on that case in Indiana. I brushed him off because I was busy. It's the first time he's called me since the last time I was in Vegas."

"So you're mad at yourself because you wanted to talk to him, but you feel like you have to be angry with him because of what he did. You want to forgive him, but you think if you do, he'll hurt you again."

More anger darkened his eyes as he listened to her dissect everything he had been feeling over the last year.

"I thought we agreed not to profile each other." He said through clenched teeth.

"It's hard not to when your feelings are screaming at me through your eyes and body language."

"I don't want to talk about this now." He grabbed his messenger and go bag again. "Please get out of my way so I can get back to Quantico."

She moved and he opened the door. "Are you coming?"

"Yeah…"

* * *

The team gathered in the conference room with Reid speaking to them rather than JJ. He outlined the letter for them as they listened. "I got this from my father in the mail today. It's written in a code I made up when I was six. I haven't really read it over and translated it." He stopped going pink in the cheeks. "We used to play games and secret messages with it." His voice cracked at bit. "Anyway… The letter he wrote as a plea for help has to do with the death of Lily Camden. She worked for Mason Parker Jr."

"Isn't he some internet billionaire that bought up a few hotels and casinos in Las Vegas?" Rossi observed.

"Yes… She was his real estate lawyer. My father said she was as straight an arrow as they come for a lawyer. If she found something off with Mason Parker, then he had to take it seriously."

"Did he know how to reach her?" Hotch asked.

"Lily Camden is dead. She was found raped and murdered behind the Tangiers three weeks ago. The police don't have any leads on the murder. It looks like she was in the wrong place at the wrong time."

"But you don't think so." Rossi asked.

"I don't know what to think. I don't have any crime scene photos or any reports on the crime."

"I'd like to go to Vegas with him Hotch!" Rossi said. "We can check it out and see if there's anything to William Reid's story."

"Good… I was going to suggest that you go. If you find anything, try to get the locals to invite us on the case. We'll come out no matter what, but it would be nice if we have the right to be there." Hotch said.

"Thank you Hotch." Reid inclined his head to his Unit Chief.

"I trust your instincts Reid."

Rossi and Reid left the conference room with JJ in tow. "I'll get you two booked on the next commercial flight. Sorry I can't give you the jet boys." She winked at them.

"Should be fun!" Rossi replied.

"You don't have to go with me." Reid said as he separated from Rossi at his office.

"If you think it's worth looking into, then so do I. I trust your instincts Reid.

"Even after the last time we went to Vegas? I accused my own father of child rape and murder if you recall."

"I remember… You were wrong! As I told you a few weeks ago, there's a first time for everything. Doesn't mean I think you're wrong now."

_Don't know if that's an insult or a compliment_. Reid thought, so he just smiled and went to his desk for his go bag.

* * *

The commercial flight landed at last at just after seven pm pacific daylight time. Rossi led Reid off the plane and down to the baggage claim area. They dodged around tourists with their colorful clothes and cameras. Reid nearly ran into a middle-aged man dressed in a crinkled blue pinstriped suit. He glared at the young profiler through a pair of black rimmed glasses. "Sorry…" Reid apologized.

"Watch where you're walking." The man shouted back as he headed in the opposite direction.

Reid hefted his bag on his shoulder and hurried to keep up with Rossi who made his way through the crowd with no problem at all. A few people glanced at the older profiler as though they recognized him, but no one really stared.

As they waited for their bags to appear, Rossi said, "I miss the jet."

"Me too," Reid agreed.

"Yeah…" Rossi said as he spied his bag. "It must be rough dealing with all the attention from the flight attendants."

Reid felt his cheeks go red. "I didn't do anything." He squeaked.

"You don't have to SSA Dr. Reid," He quipped. "As I recall from what Morgan told me, you have quite an effect on the working girls. At least these women aren't prostitutes."

Reid nearly dropped his bag at this comment. "I don't know what you're talking about."

"I can see that… Why don't we go pick up our rental car?"

After standing in line for twenty minutes, they picked up the SUV Rossi had asked for and got on the road. Reid looked out at the scenery as it passed them by. The early spring air hadn't gotten too hot, but it was much warmer than in Washington DC.

"Where are we going first?" Rossi said.

"Um… I guess we should go see my father first and make sure he's okay."

"He hasn't answered any of your calls?"

"No…"

"Okay… We'll go to his place first. Why don't you program the GPS for me?"

Reid did as he was told and settled back in his seat. His heart was beating very slowly as though the organ had settled down into quicksand. He closed his eyes against the lightheaded feeling in the front of his head. What would they find when they got to his father's home?

For the first time since he'd learned the truth of William Reid's abandonment of his family, Reid wondered if his father was okay.

* * *

He opened his eyes against the blackness of the hole in the ground that had become his prison. His eyes felt like someone had sucked all the moisture out of them. He blinked slowly trying to push reluctant tears onto the dried out eyeballs.

He licked his lips, feeling them crack and tasting the salt of a tiny bit of blood. The stinging of his lips added to the general discomfort of his body. He'd had to relive himself in one corner of the tiny hole and the sharp smell of urine nearly made him vomit. Of course, he didn't have anything in his stomach to add to the stink in the hole, but it didn't mean the nausea would go away.

He tried to stand up even though his muscles jumped and trembled. He made it to his feet and took a couple of steps in the dark. He moved just three steps away from his wall before dizziness overwhelmed his body and he fell onto the hard ground.

The square of light returned just as he passed out. He didn't see the hands lower down more water and bread to him. He didn't hear the voice speak to him until cold water splashed onto his body. His eyes popped open and his leg muscles cramped as he jerked away from the water pouring over his body.

"Who are you?" He tried to shout in a very hoarse voice.

"It's up to you to figure that out Mr. Reid."

"I don't have to. I know exactly who you work for."

"If you're so smart Mr. Reid then you know you won't get out of this alive."

"I don't care what you do to me. My life hasn't been stellar, but at least I know your boss is going down. Why don't you help me out? I'll put in a good word for you if you do. You don't owe him anything."

"You don't know what I owe to the boss man."

"You don't owe him your life."

"You can't possibly hurt him even if you had a chance of escaping." The voice laughed.

William tried again to see around the bright light shining down on him, but his dried out eyes didn't want to focus.

"I think you'd be surprised at the chance I have."

"You have nothing but a son that hates you and an ex-wife in the loony bin. You won't get help from either of them."

William didn't speak. The man was right. Spencer had no obligation to come to his aid. "You're right… Perhaps it is better for me just to rot down here."

"Don't worry Mr. Reid. My employer doesn't like to be kept waiting. If Agent Reid doesn't come for the love of his father, then we'll find some other way to entice him."

"Stay away from my son or so help me God…"

The voice began to laugh as though what William said pleased him enormously. "You're in no position to threaten anyone. Think about it."

The trapdoor fell with a clatter and returned him to darkness. For the first time in nearly twenty years, William cried.


	5. The White Pawn

**_Disclaimer: see my profile_**

**_A/n hello all... Thank you all so much for your wonderful feedback. Mucho thanks to all who've made this a favorite or added it to your alerts. Please enjoy this installment. _**

**_The White Pawn_**

Sunlight, yellow and soft dappled the streets of William Reid's neighborhood with shadows that tried to race Reid and Rossi's SUV. They drove down Knoll Road to number 3110, passing homes with lawns already pastoral and green in the early spring afternoon.

His father's home had a short concrete driveway that led up to a garage with a shut door. No cars inhabited the driveway as they parked. Reid got out first and looked around at the neat front yard landscaped with bougainvillea, purple sage and yellow bells. The desert wildflowers and shrubs were contained in a graveled area that replaced a high maintenance lawn.

"No car in the drive." Rossi said, "But he's got a nice place here." He joined Reid at the intersection between the driveway and the walkway to his father's front door.

"Yeah… Maybe he's not here. We should go to his office instead."

Rossi shot out a hand to stop Reid from turning around back to their vehicle. "Don't you think we should trying knocking first?"

Reid looked back at the small, one story red brick home. The door, set into the brick beneath the overhang of a small porch seemed a million miles away and just as unapproachable.

"Maybe you should go knock?" He asked the older agent hopefully.

"No! You're the one he wants to see Reid. It's time to man up and face him."

Anger lanced Reid's chest like a burning arrow shot from a medieval knight. It pierced the armor he had worn around that sensitive organ for nearly twenty years. What right did Rossi have to tell him that he should 'man up,' and face the person he had hated for years?

"Don't let him chase you away Reid. Show him who's the stronger between you. You might be surprised."

Reid looked again at the door, painted black with a brass knocker hung at the right level for an adult to announce their arrival. There should be a moat to cross or a dragon to slay! He thought inanely.

He squared his shoulders and walked down the concrete walkway, up three steps to the porch, passing a swing hanging to his right. It's chains creaked a bit in the wind that sprang up to tease his hair into wispy strands blocking his view from behind the sunglasses he wore. He didn't hear Rossi follow him up the steps. The older agent hung back waiting for him to raise his hand and knock. He waited for a long minute hoping that his father's car was parked in the garage and he'd heard them pull up. If William Reid answered the door first, then Reid wouldn't have to make the first chess move.

_I don't want to be white pawn this time._

The last chess game he'd played with Eric in the park suddenly appeared in his memory. The young boy had beaten him with a clever move of his last pawn that Reid hadn't seen coming. Suddenly, he didn't want to be here or knock on the door. What if something happened?

He looked back over his shoulder to Rossi who just stood there watching him with no expression. The older agent flicked his eyes up to Reid's but he didn't have to say anything.

_It's up to you._

It had always been up to him. He turned back to the door that was just a door and not the gateway to another dimension and knocked. The brass knocker sounded very loud. He suddenly felt as though he were playing that old kids game of knocking and hiding from some stranger in the neighborhood. He'd never been invited to play such games, but he knew of them. He wanted to run back to the car with Rossi, gun the engine and never return. He stayed rooted to the spot through sheer force of will and knowing that something was very wrong for William to contact him as he had. They waited but no one came to the door. He knocked again, this time the knocker sounded like the brass on wood of other doors he'd had to announce himself at to do his job. Minutes went by but no one answered the knock or the next knock after that one.

"Do you think he's in there and knows it's me?" Reid asked.

"Use your head Reid, he's not going to ask you to come out here and then not answer the door."

"Right… So he's not here. Should we check out the place anyway?"

"We can't kick in the door without probable cause."

"But the file he sent to me," Reid protested.

"It's all speculation on his part. Let's go to his office and see what they know."

"Alright…"

One part of him rejoiced. He wouldn't have to see how his father lived after all. The other part of him desperately wanted to go inside. What if his dad had pictures of him on the walls or on a home office desk? What if he didn't have pictures? He decided that line of thinking hurt too much to pursue so he followed Rossi back to the truck.

Rossi turned around and held out the keys to the rental truck. "Why don't you drive? You know Las Vegas better than I do."

"But I don't -"

"I think you need to concentrate on driving. If I get behind the wheel, you'll just sit over there like a bump on a log and brood. I'm not in the mood for that today."

Reid snatched the keys from Rossi's hand and went to the driver's side of the car. So much for their agreement not to profile each other.

9999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999

They reached his father's law offices twenty minutes later. Reid pushed the button for the alarm on the car after Rossi exited the SUV and shut the door. "Feel better?" He asked.

Reid sighed. "Yes… Was that really necessary?"

"Yes… I want you to take the lead in there. If your father's there, he's expecting you this time. I think it'll go much better if you approach him. If he's not there, the staff might open up better to his son."

"Okay!"

His heart began to bang in his chest as he opened the door to his father's law firm. The woman behind the desk was the same woman that had been there the first time they'd seen William Reid in his office.

"Oh hello… You're Dr. Spencer Reid," She said smiling encouragingly at him.

"Yeah… Um we need to see him about FBI business if that's okay."

"Well he's not here. He hasn't been in all morning. I'll see if Charlotte's around." She picked up the phone.

"There's no answer at her desk. Why don't you go wait in his office? She might have run out for a minute."

She led them down the hall to the familiar office Reid had seen when he'd come looking to accuse his father of raping and murdering Riley Jenkins. It would've felt like deja vu except that his father wasn't in the room when they sat down to wait for him.

"He's not here and he's not at his home. He's not answering his cell. I don't understand." He turned to Rossi from the pacing he'd begun in the office. "I think I brought us here on a wild goose chase."

"Why don't we wait until we talk to your dad's secretary? You never know… He might be ill."

"I don't think he's sick Rossi… We're looking into something involving Mason Parker. He's not a man that got to where he was without stepping on toes even if he's squeaky clean now."

The door to the office opened and the receptionist came in. "Charlotte hasn't been in today. She left a message with Megan, one of our interns. Your father told her he was going to Reno. He told Charlotte to take the week off." She addressed Reid.

"Reno!" Reid squeaked. "He asked me to come to Las Vegas. Why would he leave town."

"Ah… Thank you for your help." Rossi said as he ushered Reid out of the office "We need to get in touch with the team." He said as Reid protested the sudden departure from the office.

"I don't understand."

"I know… You're too close to this to think objectively. Your dad sends you a coded message that only you can understand. He tries to contact you by phone. He tells you to call him the minute you get into town for a place to meet. He doesn't answer your call, and he's disappeared off the face of the earth. What does all that tell you?"

"That there's something more to this than we thought. We need to find him."

"Yes… Call Garcia and find out if your dad is registered under his name anywhere in Reno."

"Alright…" He pulled out his phone and hit his friend's speed dial.

"You've reached the FBI's hottest red head. Speak and be heard."

"Hey Garcia…"

"Be still me heart! If it isn't the cutest genius on this half of the world. What can I do for you baby cakes?"

Her carefree banter lifted his shoulders and his spirits. "Can you check bookings and find out if my dad's registered at any hotel in Reno?"

"Sure thing sweetheart… Won't take me but a hot minute."

He heard her fingers clicking over the keys of her beloved keyboard and it made him smile. "Thanks…"

"Okay… So far, I don't see any charges on your dad's credit cards for a hotel or travel to Reno. Let me looks into hotel stays and… Nope. There's nothing showing for him in the name of William Reid. He could be staying under another name."

"I don't think so Garcia. Thanks for your help."

"Anytime handsome… Can I do anything else?"

"Yeah… I need everything you can find out about Mason Parker."

"I'm already on that… I can tell you that his public persona is cleaner than an edited film for national TV."

"I figured as much. How far and fast can you dig without sending up any flags?"

"Why do you insist on insulting me after six years together?"

He smiled widely at her insulted tone. "Sorry Garcia… It's just that it's very important we don't send up any flags."

"Don't worry about it my gorgeous junior G-man. No one catches the Goddess of the information superhighway."

"Thanks!"

"Now… How are you baby cakes?"

"I'm fine!"

"Yeah… I can hear in your voice how fine you are."

"When did you become a profiler?"

"You all had to study… It comes naturally to me." She quipped.

"I'll be okay."

"I don't know if I believe you, but I'll let it go for now."

"Goodbye Garcia!"

He shut his phone and joined Rossi who'd climbed back into the passenger seat of the truck. "What did you find out?"

Reid related his phone call to Rossi. "Alright… Let's go talk to the local LEOs… We need their help."

"Do you think they'll help us?"

"We'll talk to Detective Hyde's captain. Perhaps he'll let us borrow the detective for awhile."

"Detective Hyde wasn't very happy with us the last time we were here. We forced him to arrest Lou Jenkins for killing Gary Michaels. I don't think he'll want to help us."

Reid inserted the key into the ignition and twisted it into life as Rossi fastened his seat belt. "That's why he's the perfect person to help us. He's a friend of your dad's. He knows him better than you do. He might know where your father went."

"Alright… We'll try it your way."

9999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999

Reid pulled up in front of the North Las Vegas police barracks. More deja vu washed over Reid. The memory of seeing Lou Riley leaving the station that morning hit him hard. This time, the only people leaving the building were officers in uniform and plain clothes.

He followed Rossi into the barracks, past faces that were familiar to them from the Riley Jenkins case. The office of Captain Pemberton sat at the back of the building. The glassed in office gave the captain a full view of the bullpen, but it also reminded the officers that they were under observation by their immediate boss.

Captain Pemberton sat behind a metal desk stacked with file folders, a computer and a black phone. He motioned them inside after making them wait in the bullpen for about fifteen minutes.

"Hello Agent Rossi, Dr. Reid." He greeted them. "I'm not sure how I can help you."

"I was contacted by my father yesterday." Reid said, opening his messenger bag. "He called me and he sent this file to me."

He handed it over to the Captain, waited as the man read the letter, and looked over the file. Finally, he looked up at the two agents with dark brown eyes that burned like a laser into Reid. "What's this?"

"It's a code I made up when I was six years old. Only my father and I understand it. He's onto something big regarding Mason Parker."

The Captain sat up straighter in his black leather office chair. His bushy eyebrows seemed to bristle as he regarded the young genius. "You come in here with documents in a code only you and your dad can understand and I'm supposed to just let you have the run of the place."

"Reid's father is a prominent attorney here." Rossi reminded him. "Ms. Camden's file came to him after she died. We don't know how because we can't find him to ask. He's disappeared." Rossi explained.

"I can't go up against Mason Parker on the word of a federal agent that almost cost me one of my best detectives."

"Would you rather we hadn't exposed the cover up of the murder of an alleged pedophile?" Reid asked.

Captain Pemberton swelled in his chair; his hard military bearing seemed to take over the room despite the glass walls. "I happen to think one less pervert in my town is a good thing. That man raped and killed a six year old boy."

"You don't know that for sure. A distraught parent took the law into his own hands." Rossi said.

"That may be true, but Lou Jenkins is in jail… I don't think that's fair as it was his child that died."

"We can argue about the inequities of the justice system another time." Reid said. "We need your help to find my dad."

"I can't, not with this kind of evidence. He's only been missing for twenty-four hours. You know my hands are tied for at least another twenty-four."

"Can we at least talk to Detective Hyde? He might know something."

"He's working a case. Fortunately, there's wasn't any evidence that he helped your father and Lou Jenkins cover up a murder. I had to discipline him for the accusations, but he's still working for me."

His face clearly said that they'd be in big trouble if they put Detective Hyde in another bad position with his Captain.

"It's none of our business what you do with your detectives when it's necessary to discipline them." Rossi said.

"No… You just come in here, do your job and leave problems behind when you leave that the rest of us have to clean up." His gravelly voice went up from the disbelief he'd shown to Reid's code, to anger. "I won't allow that to happen again. You better have evidence this time before you accuse one of my most prominent citizens of wrong doing."

"We will," Reid said looking very chastised.

"I'll let you have Detective Hyde for help after your father has been gone for forty-eight hours. It's the best I can do. Don't bother him until then. He has enough on his plate. It'll be up to him whether he helps you. He doesn't like the FBI very much right now."

His dark eyes flashed out that he didn't think very much of them either.

"Thank you for your cooperation." Rossi said.

Reid led the way out of the bullpen, past a few of the officers staring at the two of them and back out to the golden sunlight.

"Nice way to charm the Captain." Rossi said as they climbed back into their truck.

"I didn't charm him. He doesn't like me."

"Your look of utter chastisement got him to offer Detective Hyde for help."

"I wasn't faking," Reid insisted as he backed out of their parking space.

"Sure you weren't!"

999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999

Mason Parker picked up the photograph on his desk. "The plan is falling into place." He told the person in the picture. "Don't worry… Soon our revenge will be complete. I promise!"

He put the picture back on the desk and picked up his phone. "Please get Hank on the phone for me."

"Yeah boss!"

"Go to the Venetian and keep an eye out for Dr. Reid. He should be checking in at any moment. I want to know everything he does. Make use of our girl if you have to."

"Okay boss."


	6. The Suite LIfe of Spencer Reid

**_Disclaimer: see my profile_**

**_A/n thank you all so much for your continued support of this story. Please enjoy!_**

**_The Suite Life of Spencer Reid_**

The bellhop inserted his key card into the hotel room door marked Suite 4500. Reid glanced around at a man dressed in a pair of tan shorts and an orange tee shirt as he waited for the door to his room to be opened. The man nodded to Reid and smiled. Reid gave him a tiny wave and followed the young bellhop through the door.

The room overwhelmed him when he turned from the door. It had an entryway just like a home with a small, round, claw-footed table at the left. On top of the mahogany table stood a tall crystal vase with four long stemmed white roses. An oval shaped mirror hung on the wall so that the vase and flowers reflected in its surface.

His shoes whispered over the navy blue carpet as he followed the bellhop down into the sunken living area. The bellhop, with the name Steve on his nametag, carried Reid's bag into a room to the left. Reid turned slowly, checking out the living room. An eleven foot, L-shaped gold upholstered sofa dominated the center of the room. A huge coffee table, a thirty-two inch flat screen, and a desk completed the living area.

"There you are sir," the bellhop startled him out of his thoughts.

"Um… Okay," he rummaged in his pocket for a tip.

He laid a few bills on the man's outstretched palm. "Thank you!" Steve smiled and tipped his royal blue and gold tasseled hat. He gave Reid his key card and left the suite to its silence and its new occupant.

He headed into the bedroom. The huge, canopy draped bed, had a bench in front of it like some Victorian style room. It had its own flat screen television and sage green pattern carpeting. The bellhop had left his suitcase on a small stand in one corner of the room. His ancient, light blue terry cloth robe lay on top of the bed. The rest of his clothes were in the closet or placed in a very large mahogany armoire across the room from the bed. It was weird to have someone go through his clothes and unpack.

He couldn't think why JJ had booked them fancy rooms like this. The bureau wouldn't be happy with her splurging on the corporate card that way. He shrugged his shoulders, at least it wasn't his signature on the expenditure paperwork. Hotch still had to sign off on the expense voucher and he was sure to be unhappy.

He went down the stairs to the sunken living area and perched on the edge of the large sofa. He looked around the room, trying to keep his mind off this whirlwind of a day. The fancy décor of the room couldn't keep his thoughts off his father.

They'd hit a dead end. There had to be a way to find him. They needed to get into his father's home. He got up and went to the window. The evening was fast approaching, making the long shadows lean over the streets of the city. So many people hurried along the street below him even though they looked so small from the fifteenth floor.

_What did they have to do that kept them so busy all the time? _

No one ever seemed to slow down in life. Everything had such a frantic pace. Why could no one just learn to take things slowly, to breathe once in awhile? Was it the lack of oxygen to the brain that made everyone so uptight or the crazies go psycho and kill. He shook his head… He was being a little nutty himself.

His hands started shaking again as he went back to the living area couches. A large part of him wanted to run far away, to hop the next commercial flight back to DC. His dad probably did go to Reno. Perhaps the coded file was his way of initiating some kind of weird game. Hotch wouldn't be happy if Reid had come all the way out here on the bureau dime for a wild goose chase. He left the couch again and went back to the large bedroom.

He put his bag on the bed and went to the closet. He'd taken most of the clothes out of the closet and folded them up before his brain stopped him. He couldn't just take off back home and let his father down. As much as he didn't want to be William Reid's son, the man was still his father. He had to help him. Maybe when it was all over, he would have to talk to his dad and try to find some way around all the pain and the hurt or else it would go on forever. He couldn't face the rest of his life without some kind of confrontation even if he didn't believe in closure. He unfolded his clothes and put them back in the closet.

He pulled his phone out of his pocket and dialed Rossi. "Hey Rossi," he said when the older agent answered.

"Reid…"

"What's up with these rooms?"

"I just talked to Hotch… Apparently, The Venetian has a special on their business class rooms."

"This is business class!" Reid squeaked.

"Yes… So what's our next step?"

"I was thinking of going back out to my dad's."

"We can't enter without cause."

"I know, but I'm his son. What if we find a key because dad told me where it was when he invited me to come out here months ago?"

"He didn't invite you or tell you where the key is." Rossi said, and Reid could hear the smirk in the older profiler's voice.

"Well sure, but how would they know that."

"True enough… Why don't we grab a bite as it's getting late and then we'll go out there?"

"I don't know if I can eat."

"Then you can watch me. Meet me downstairs in twenty minutes," Rossi said, and clicked off the phone.

Reid sighed… If he hurried, he could have a shower and change clothes.

Mason Parker snapped his briefcase closed and pushed away from the huge rosewood desk. He went to the closet at the far end of the room and opened the door. His royal blue overcoat, worn because the morning had been cold, hung alone in the large closet. His secretary had informed him that the afternoon was very warm. He flung it over his arm and left the office.

"Sherry…" He addressed the fifty year-old woman that kept his office running smoothly.

She lifted her head and smiled at him. "You leaving Mr. Parker?"

"Yes… I have that dinner with Senator Smart."

"Of course… I lost track of the time."

"You can finish the letters later. Go home and enjoy your evening."

"You're always so good to me." She smiled.

"You remind me of my mother. I miss her very much."

"I know…" She signed off the computer and pulled her keys out of her suit pocket.

"Thank you for keeping my mind off her." Mason said as she locked up her files and her desk.

"You're welcome… It's wonderful working for someone that doesn't push you till you drop like some bosses."

He laughed as they made their way to the elevator. "I think other bosses are stupid if they push employees to the breaking point. It doesn't foster productivity and you're the most productive secretary I've ever had."

Sherrie blushed to the root of her salt and pepper hair she kept piled off her face and on the top of her head. "I believe you just may be the wisest man I know." She kidded.

"Thank you gentle lady." The doors to the elevator opened and he let her precede him onto the car.

"You're welcome kind sir."

He rode down to the first level of the parking garage chatting of inconsequential things with his gullible secretary. She had always been so easy to fool, which was why he kept her around. It was much easier to keep up the mask he had to wear if you didn't have a nosy personal assistant.

"I'll see you bright and early in the morning Mr. Parker." She said, waving to him as he went one way and she went the other.

He pulled out his cell phone as soon as the old bat was out of hearing range. He dialed the first number on his speed dial. "What did you find out?"

"You're going to be very happy Mr. Parker. Dr. Reid and an Agent Rossi from the FBI just checked into "The Venetian."

Mason's hand relaxed around the phone. "Tell me why I should be so unhappy about that?" He snapped at man.

"The Venetian is your hotel… Isn't that a little too close for comfort?"

"That's why it's perfect. We can keep an eye on him." Mason pulled his keys out of his pants pocket and pressed a button to deactivate the alarm.

He knew that some people wondered why he drove himself when he could have limousines at his disposal at all times. He found that driving an American made car made people think he related to them.

"What if the rest of his team shows up?"

"They have to be invited in. There's no reason for the local police to ask them to come to Las Vegas. They won't show up until it's too late."

He ended the call and turned the ignition of the car. "Everything's falling into place. It'll all be over soon." He said to himself and to someone else he had to fight for now.

Reid and Rossi pulled back into William Reid's driveway an hour and a half later. The sun had nearly set and replaced the gold light and shadow with light blue sky, dark black tree silhouettes and purple and pink clouds.

"So how are you going to get in?" Rossi asked the younger profiler.

"He used to keep a key under the mat at home." Reid said as they followed the concrete pathway back up to the front door.

"Isn't that a little obvious?"

"Yeah… I think he always thought others would think that and not look there because they would think he'd keep it somewhere else."

Rossi smirked. "Kind of convoluted logic, don't you think?"

"Probably, but let's see if it's there," Reid said as he bent to take up the hooked welcome mat in front of the black door.

"Hm… Looks like I was wrong." Reid said staring at the bare concrete. He stood up and felt along the top of the door. "Nothing up here either."

"What do you want to do?"

"Let me think."

He turned in a slow circle looking carefully at his father's yard. He noticed that his dad had incorporated even more desert flowers in his landscaping than Reid had noticed his first time there. Of course, he had been too shell shocked to take a good look around when they'd made their first visit. There was also the fact that the landscaping had the look of randomness, but he noticed that whoever had done it had done a remarkable job making it look random.

"Over there," He said suddenly.

He crossed the yard, passing a couple of purple sage bushes to a small granite rock. He picked it up and removed the key from inside.

"A hide-a-key?" Rossi said skeptically.

"I almost missed it. You see the color of the rocks. The pattern is the same with all of stones in the landscaping which is by design." He held up the fake rock to Rossi. "See the color is different on this rock."

Rossi stared at the light cream-colored rock, which couldn't be more than a shade different from the rest of the rocks in the landscaping. He opened his mouth, shut it, and then said. "You know what… I'm not even going to ask."

Reid grinned at him and they went back to the front door. He inserted the key and turned it. The door opened on silent hinges. Reid saw in the fading rosy-red light of the day that a switch for the entryway lights was at his right. He flipped on the light. The yellow glow of the lamps illuminated the entryway and another room to his left. Rossi followed him inside where they both stopped and stared.

"Well…" Rossi said looking around. "This isn't what I expected at all."


	7. Profiling the Profiler's Dad

**_Disclaimer: see my profile_**

**_A/n thanks again for all your kind support. Here's the next chapter. Please enjoy_**

**_Profiling the Profiler's Dad_**

Reid stepped around Rossi into his father's living area. His shoes squeaked a bit on the polished hardwood floors. He ran two long fingers over a chocolate leather couch standing against the wall and facing the large window to his left. The huge satinwood bookcase over flowing with books reminded him of his Mclean apartment and he shivered despite the golden sun streaming into the room and warming it. A large, square coffee table inlaid with spotless glass had more books stacked on it. He picked up a copy of "Twenty Thousand Leagues under the Sea," and smiled despite himself.

"What are you thinking?" Rossi asked.

"This is the first book he ever read to me."

Rossi didn't say anything as he took a good look around the neat as a pin room.

"You seemed very surprised when we walked in." Reid said.

"It was this," Rossi went to a small satinwood end table that held a lamp with a cream-colored shade and one framed photograph on its polished surface. He picked it up and held it out to Reid who studied it.

"When was this taken?" Rossi asked.

"Right after I joined the FBI. I had my picture splashed all over the internet by some jealous college student. He applied for the same position and the FBI rejected him in favor of me. He thought that proving he could hack into the FBI's database would score him points with his friends. Instead, it got him kicked out of school and a few thousand hours of community service.

"I take it the FBI didn't find his talents as attractive as those of our resident genius hacker."

"No…" Reid found he could laugh in spite of the fear worming it's way into his gut. "I guess not."

"I was surprised to see this so prominently displayed."

"Me too…"

Reid put the gold electroplated framed picture on the end table and went to the bookcase while Rossi cleared the rest of the house. "There's no one here but us." Rossi said as he came back to the living area. "I checked the refrigerator and his bedroom. It doesn't look like he's been gone long."

"It doesn't look like anything's out of place." Reid said. "Except that I found this in the bookcase." He handed a picture album over to his partner.

Rossi flipped it open to find photographs of William Reid with a small boy that grew up until the age of ten. He saw pictures of a pretty blond woman and more photographs of Reid from what looked like articles about the young profiler from the internet. Stuck in the middle of all of it was a picture of a familiar little boy and a very young Reid in a red and white uniform. Written under the photo were the names Spencer and Kier Jennsley, with a date.

"Isn't that Riley Jenkins?" Rossi asked Reid.

"Yes…"

"Why is the photograph labeled that way?"

"I don't know. I found it pulled halfway out of the book case."

Rossi just stared at him.

"Look around, this place is spotless. Everything is in its place. He left it that way on purpose. He wanted me to see this album."

"Why…"

"I don't know yet. I think we should take a closer look at his bedroom."

They headed back to the small room at the north end of the house. Reid let Rossi go inside first. His father had a desk made from pine arranged in one corner with a personal computer on top and a printer. His closet lay opposite the regular sized bed. The hardwood floors continued in this space covered with jewel tone throw rugs that matched the dark blue bedding and comforter. The pillows were also navy blue with gold stripes to match the comforter.

"Nothing out of place?" Rossi asked as he watched Reid check the drawers with his gloved hands.

"No…"

Rossi opened the closet. "I can't say if any of his clothes is missing." He reached in and pulled out a light grey suitcase and a matching overnight bag. He also found a toiletry bag inside the suitcase. "If he had plans to go to Reno, he went without luggage."

"Yes… It's odd."

"It also adds credence to your theory that something happened to him. His car's gone and hasn't been found and he's vanished after sending you that letter and file."

"Should we call in the rest of the team?"

Rossi shook his head. "We need to look into your father's computer first. I'm assuming Garcia can hack in again."

Reid forced a small smile. "Yeah… I'm sure she can.

cmcmcmcmcmcmcmcmcmcmcmcmcmcmcmcmcmcmcmcmcmcmcmcmcmcmcmcmcmcmcmcmcm

Light appeared from over William's head as he sat with his legs drawn up to his chest. He shivered despite the heat of this prison as the voice called down to him. "Mr. Reid… Are you enjoying your stay?"

William forced himself not to respond to the voice. Spencer had to be in town. He had to know by now that something was wrong. Had his son found any of the clues William had left for him? He had to rely on Spencer's impressive talents or it was all lost.

"Don't play with me William Reid. I know your son's weaknesses. I will exploit them and make you wish you had cooperated with me. Do you want him down in that pit with you?"

"You won't get close enough to touch him." William gasped out.

"I already have! It was stupid of you to contact him and make him suspicious enough to come out here. Still I admit that I'm glad you did it as it saved me the trouble of going all the way to DC to make him pay along with you."

"You're lying… Spencer isn't here. He doesn't care about me." Telling the truth in the lie still hurt, but it was William's penance. He had to pay for all the hurt he'd caused his precious son.

"He's right here in Las Vegas. I was pleasantly surprised to learn he had checked into my hotel. It was a bit flattering really."

"I don't believe you."

"Yes you do Mr. Reid. I can see it in your face and hear it in your voice. You know I am right about your son. I'm going to bait the hook with something I know he can't resist."

"Please don't hurt him!" William begged dropping the pretence that he didn't believe that Spencer had come to town.

The man, who had a different voice than the man that had brought him here, laughed. The sound raised the hair on William Reid's neck and he shivered harder than ever. "I'm not intending to hurt Dr. Reid right now. He hasn't outlived his usefulness just yet."

"He won't help you. He hates me. If you try to threaten him by saying you'll hurt me, he'll just laugh and walk away."

_Oh God… Please let him do just that if this man gets his hands on him_.

"In a strange way... Your estrangement from your son makes me very happy Mr. Reid. Still, I think you've repaired the relationship just enough that he'll come running to help you."

"You overestimate him," William croaked, trying another tact while he tried to ignore the thirst burning in his throat. "My son is an overgrown know-it-all who had the nerve to accuse me of child rape and murder not so long ago. Even though it wasn't true, I could see in his eyes that he wanted it to be me."

"Stop trying to play your son's profiler games with me." The man snapped. "I'm not in the mood for games. Dr. Reid will suffer for your sins before I kill him too. Never doubt that I won't do it and make you watch me before I kill you too."

Something dropped down from the opening over his head. "Night's here… I don't want you to starve."

The door shut leaving William back in darkness and the blackness of a heart that ached for his son.

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Reid and Rossi finished their careful inspection of William's house by the time the sun had fully set. Reid hadn't found anything out of place other than more printed out articles from the internet about Spencer. He went through his father's music collection looking for clues, but only found the Celine Dion selections as humorous as Emily had found them. His father also liked Beethoven as much as Spencer did. He found some Grieg, Handel, Mozart and Chopin. He also had some old jazz and blues as well as contemporary jazz and easy listening music.

"So what do you think?" He asked Rossi as the older man, once again behind the wheel of the rental truck, drove them back to their hotel.

"I think we both need some rest."

"Yeah… I have a headache. I can't think straight."

"Well there's another first." Rossi deadpanned.

"Thank you for not babying me."

"What good would it have done us?"

Reid nodded his head in the dark interior of the car. "I just mean that for as long as I've been with the FBI everyone's sort of treated me like the little brother, or the fragile son. You don't do that. Not that I don't like having 'brothers or in Gideon's case it was nice to have mentor, but I like being accepted for who I am."

"Why should I treat you differently from anyone else just because you're young and a genius? You have more than earned your place in the bureau. It would be stupid to walk around on eggshells with you."

"Thanks anyway…"

"You're welcome… Can we stop with the mushy stuff?" Rossi complained.

Reid laughed. "See… you're doing it again, putting things in perspective."

Rossi turned down the street to their hotel and turned left again for the parking garage under the hotel. "You can't do your job right without perspective." He said.

"True…"

They left the truck with the squeak of the alarm echoing through the concrete parking garage. They passed an older couple dressed in evening clothes as they headed for the elevators. Another couple with five children in tow passed them as they stepped up to the elevators "Stop hitting your sister Tommy," The blond haired woman scolded. "Behave or we'll leave tomorrow without riding the rollercoaster.

Collectively all the children groaned. "Mom!'

"Your mother is right. Be quiet and stay together." The dark haired father ordered them as Rossi and Reid passed them.

The kids stomped along behind the parents to a large rental van at the far end of the garage. "I don't miss that about not having kids." Rossi said, trying to suppress a smile.

Reid pushed the button to call the elevator. "I don't understand why someone would want to have five." He shuddered.

"So you never considered it." Rossi asked.

The elevator arrived and saved Reid from answering. The doors had begun to roll shut when someone said. "Hold the elevator please!"

Reid shot out a hand and stopped the door from closing at the same time Rossi hit the door open button. A pretty, blonde haired woman hurried onto the car. She did a double take at Reid as the doors shut and he looked at her in surprise. They both said together. "I know you!"


	8. The reluctant Ladies Man

**_Disclaimer: see my profile_**

**_A/n hey all... Here's the next chapter. Thank you all for your wonderful and helpful feedback. _**

**_The reluctant Ladies Man _**

Reid shot out a hand and stopped the door from closing at the same time Rossi hit the door open button. A pretty, blonde woman hurried onto the car. She did a double take at Reid as the doors shut and he looked at her in surprise. They both said together. "I know you!"

Rossi raised an eyebrow at this mutual declaration. Reid went red in the face. "You remember her," He said to Rossi. "The last time we were here, I gave her two thousand dollars."

"Oh right…"

"You never did tell me your name!" She said coyly as her fingers played with the teardrop shaped crystal pendant at her neck. "I had to find it out on my own." She pouted.

"I'm R-Reid, um I m-mean Dr. Spencer Reid."

"He means to say SSA Dr. Spencer Reid of the FBI." Rossi said, smirking at his young partner.

"I know… I saw you on the news. You arrested that poor guy that killed his son's murderer. That was really sad." She reached out a hand wearing a ring with a small opal set in gold, and laid it on his arm.

"Yeah… So how are you?" Reid asked as the elevator rose higher and higher.

"I'm still lousy at the poker machines, but the hypnosis worked."

"Really?"

"Yeah… No more smoking. Thanks for the suggestion."

"Your welcome."

"Maybe I can thank you later." She ran a hand up his arm, ignoring Rossi.

"Um… Well I don't know -"

"Sorry baby," Rossi said. "We're here on business."

"Too bad!" She said as the door to her floor opened. "You're awfully cute." She blew him a kiss and exited the elevator.

"Smooth…" Rossi said as the elevator continued up to the fourteenth floor.

"I didn't do anything!"

"You don't have to."

Reid only stared at the older man as the door opened again. "I don't understand."

"I know…" Rossi's face twitched under his moustache as he spoke.

"You're not going to enlighten me."

"No! There are some things you have to learn on your own." His dark eyes openly laughed at the younger profiler.

Rossi turned left and Reid went right, shaking his head in confusion. _What was he supposed to learn on his own? _

He sighed as he put his key card into the door. He couldn't worry about his so-called education now. He had to keep his head on the problem of his father, not flirtatious hookers.

* * *

Mason Parker added his tuxedo jacket to his outfit. He picked up the old photograph that kept center stage on his mahogany chest of drawers. The last twenty years had been like one unending nightmare. He'd soon be able to rest without seeing blood and hearing screams in his head.

He smoothed down the front of his pleated suit pants. He had all of the best now, but it didn't make up for what he'd lost. He'd never get back the thing he most wanted. He'd punish the ones responsible for his pain and it would finally go away so he could sleep at night.

He thought about his lawyer, the beautiful Lily Camden. He shouldn't have seduced her. He should've waited until his plan had come to fruition. He sighed and adjusted the black tie and the crisp white shirt. She'd been impossible for him to resist with her golden beauty and her brains.

Damn it… If only she hadn't decided to spy on him. If she'd kept her nose out of his business, he wouldn't have had to kill her. She could've stayed with him forever. Well… At least he had his hands on Spencer Reid. Soon he'd have the son of his enemy and his plans would be complete.

He left his huge walk-in closet with its dressers and mirrors to his bedroom. His butler would be calling for his car in a few moments. He had one last phone call to make before he went to make an appearance at the Charity event.

Reid opened the door to his room and looked down the hallway to where Rossi stayed. He felt a bit like he was sneaking out of the house. That was ridiculous, as he'd never had to sneak out of his house. His father wasn't there to sneak away from and his mother didn't seem to care if he stayed or left. Still… He should be studying the file his father sent and trying to come up with an idea.

He shut the door behind him and slipped his key card into his pocket. He needed to get his mind off his dad and the potential hornets' nest they'd stepped into courtesy of the absent William Reid. He went to the elevator, pulling at the color of his violet dress shirt. If he could engage another level of his brain, maybe inspiration would strike.

The hotel's casino was very appealing to the eye. He noticed that they'd gone heavy on gold and black brocade on the walls, with matching carpet. The room was at about three quarters of capacity at the early hour of the evening. People wove in and out of long rows of one-armed bandits. The edges of the room held several small poker tables. The center of the room had several stations of black jack games. He looked over to the western wall of the casino, which held the doors to the private poker rooms. A tournament would be starting there in about four days. Morgan Parker would be here personally to oversee the beginning of the tournament. Reid thought fondly about participating in the tournament. If he'd come her under different circumstances, like a vacation, he could have some fun with all the pros.

He sighed and headed to the door of the private room. If he could get a look inside… He could imagine being in there with other players and winning the contest. He stopped as a group of four couples dressed in expensive eveningwear passed him. They all looked like the kind of people you see in an old time film noir. He watched them head out of the casino through the wall of doors to the south end of the room.

The doors to the private room still called to him so he went boldly to the entrance. It didn't appear that anyone guarded it, so he opened one of the doors and let himself into the empty room.

It was huge, taking up seven thousand square feet. Several green-topped tables were spaced throughout the room, hung with gold and pink, rather than black. At the edges of the room, there were several kitchen stations. He'd read that food was available for private parties and safes for the winnings of high rollers. He turned in a slow circle looking over the room, checking for other entrances and exits. It looked innocent but appearances could be deceptive. He left the room closing the door behind him having noted the placement of all the so-called hidden cameras.

* * *

"What did you find out?"

"_We've been watching him since he came back with his partner. He just came out of the private poker room."_

"Good… What's he doing now?"

"_He's playing poker on one of the machines."_

"Keep an eye on him."

"_Security is asking questions." _

"Tell them the truth… That he's an FBI agent."

"_Won't they wonder what he's doing here?" _

"You'll think of something Hank. Use your head. I shouldn't have to tell you everything."

"_Yes sir…" _

"Did you search his room?"

"_Yes sir… We didn't find anything out of the ordinary. I did find a file with a letter in it from William Reid. Unfortunately, I couldn't read it. It was in some kind of code. I took photos of it. Jack's working on it, but so far no luck. He says it's unlike any code he has ever seen. He said whoever came up with it is a genius."_

"Really… I never would have expected that from the _genius_ son of William Reid. Now, stop playing around and figure it _out_."

"_Jack said that we might not be able to read it without the key." _

"I don't want to hear excuses. Get it done!

"_Yes sir…" _

"I'm nearly there. Don't call me again unless it's a matter of life and death."

Mason slipped his phone into his jacket. He had to do all the thinking for his people. It was a wonder how he'd gotten as far as he did with idiots and morons around him. His car pulled over to the curb and he prepared to face the cameras.

* * *

"Did you make contact with him?"

"Yes!"

"How did it go?"

The blonde-haired woman sat down on the couch and crossed her legs. One foot swung back and forth as her siren red dress rode up to her bare thighs.

"It went great. He remembered me and so did the other guy."

"That could be a problem."

"No… They're profilers. I've dealt with the feds. They're all men under those stuffy suits." She grinned at Hank who wasn't smiling.

"Just be available to provide Dr. Reid with access to your charms."

"That won't be a problem. Dr. Reid is yummy."

"I don't want to hear about it. Just keep an eye on him. Flirt with him and find his weakness. You'll be paid very well."

"I'd do this one for free."

"Don't get cocky Angie… If you close the deal with Dr. Reid, Mr. Parker will be very pleased."

"Like I said no problem. It's always the quiet, uptight ones that turn into drooling, panting puddles if you play them right. I know exactly how to do that."

"He's smart - some kind of genius."

"Doesn't make him immune to my charms. You'll see Hank."

"Just get on with it. He's down in the casino right now. Go break the ice."

"The ice is already broken. He's _mine_."

* * *

Reid heard with half an ear the jingling of the machines around him as he played. He'd worked up to three thousand dollars so far. He'd play until he lost or reached five thousand dollars that was his self-imposed limit.

"Handsome and smart," a flirtatious voice said from his right.

He looked up and automatically smiled at the prostitute from the elevator and from his last case in Vegas. "Oh hello… How are you?"

"I'm fine. I thought I'd play a few games. I'm feeling lucky," she winked at him.

"Really," He punched the keys on his machine and listened to the bells and whistles signaled more victory for him.

"Yeah… Hey listen, I just realized I never told you my name. I'm Angie…" She held a hand out to him.

He took it… A bit surprised when she hung on just a little bit longer than was polite.

"So… Are you here on another case?" She asked sitting down right next to him.

"No…" He lied smoothly. "Rossi and I are here for a teaching seminar on profiling for the local police. We do that all the time."

"It sounds fascinating… How about we pick up where we left off last time and you buy me a drink."

"I'd like that!" He decided.

As she led the way out of the nosy casino, he wondered just what it was that she was up to. There was something in her eyes and the way she moved that had his profiler side working overtime. In any case, perhaps getting his mind completely off his dad would jolt something loose.


	9. The Black Queen

**_Disclaimer: see my profile_**

**_A/n hey all... Here's the next chapter. Once again thank you all for your feedback and comments._**

**_The Black Queen_**

"Wow…"

Angie smirked at Reid, who turned in slow circle to take in the Riva Restaurant and Bar located on the second floor of the Venetian Hotel. "This is beautiful!"

"I've been in here so many times… I don't really see it anymore." She said, leading him to the host station.

They followed a young woman with blonde hair pulled back in a jaunty ponytail the swung back and forth, as she walked. She led them through a room with Buddha statues perched above tables, red and black dragons cavorting on the gold painted walls and a huge fountain in the middle of the room.

"If you decide to _eat_ just let me know." Their hostess said, looking at Reid and ignoring Angie as if she didn't exist.

"Just drinks for now." Angie put her arm through Reid's and pulled him away from the perky little blonde.

"Whatever!"

They took seats at the end of the bar. "So _what_ do you want?" Angie asked running one of her fingertips up his arm.

"Just a beer please."

"So polite," the bartender said to Reid as he approached them. "Are you sure you can handle Angie. She's a wildcat." He winked at the prostitute who pouted back at him.

"Give me a Venetian Bellini, Rex."

The bartender swiped at the spotless counter with an equally spotless white silk cloth. "Watch out," he addressed Reid. "She's on the prowl."

"I think I can handle it." Reid said.

"Sure you can." Rex smirked.

"Go away Rex, we're trying to have a conversation."

"I know you honey and conversation ain't what you're interested in with this one."

She ignored Rex and faced Reid. "So… Tell me about yourself Dr. Reid, other than the obvious special agent stuff."

"Could you not mention that?" Reid said, blushing furiously.

"No one's listening except for Rex and he's more interested in your body than what you do for a living."

Reid choked on the beer and began to cough. "Really?"

"How can a profiler that chases murderers be so naïve and innocent?" She asked moving even closer to him so that he could smell the cinnamon and musk of her perfume.

"I don't usually go to clubs." He squeaked.

"What do you do on your time off? Do you have a girlfriend?"

"No!"

"A wife?"

"No!"

"Well good," she smiled. "Not that it makes much difference in my line of work."

"Actually…" Reid began with a squeak. He cleared his throat, "The percentage of married men that make use of prostitutes is much lower than most people think."

"You know…" She said, not at all offended. "You're right about that. It rather surprises me. Of course, a lot of men take off their rings when they leave their homes."

"True, there're professions like plumbing that require a man not wear a ring because of the risk of injury to themselves."

"Do you know everything?" Angie asked as she rubbed her little finger around the edge of the glass.

"No!"

_Damn the squeak!_

"You sure sound like you do."

He swallowed down half his beer, trying to ignore her fingers on his arm and Rex staring at him from the other end of the bar.

A soft tune he recognized as Sade, singing about love as a taboo, began to play. Several people got up and began to slow dance. Angie finished her drink. "Why don't we go up to your room?"

"Oh… Um, I don't think that's a good idea." He managed to say without squeaking.

"Don't you like me?" She pouted.

"Maybe he don't swing that way sugar." Rex suddenly interrupted with his cleaning cloth and a big smile for Reid.

"Sure he does," Angie said confidently. "I know when a man desires me. I'm a professional after all."

"Why don't we just ask him?"

They both stared at Reid along with another woman sitting at the bar with a half-drunk Mimosa in front of her.

"Actually… Men tend to be static in their sexual orientation. Women are more fluid in their sexuality. They don't have as much trouble engaging in relationships with either sex. A study conducted at UCLA determined that some men -"

"What are you, some kind of walking Encyclopedia?" The strange woman interrupted around her drink.

"Who asked you?" Rex asked irritably.

"Come on!" Angie yanked on Reid's arm. "Let's get out of here before you start a riot."

She led him out of the restaurant and into the closest elevator. "Do you always just say whatever comes into your mind?" She asked as she hit the button for the fourteenth floor.

Reid went pink in the cheeks. "Yeah…"

"It's a good thing I think you're cute." She cuddled up to his side and put her hand on his crotch.

"Angie! We're in an elevator"

"Don't be so shy baby… Your friend wants to come out and play." Her tongue licked at his left ear as the elevator car rose between the tenth and eleventh floors.

"Angie!"

"We've got all night if you want you handsome thing."

The elevator finally reached the right floor. She pulled him out by his tie. He let her lead him down the hallway to his room.

"Angie!" He breathed as she fumbled the key card out of his pants pocket and into the door lock while nuzzling at his neck. "Stop… Please, I can't do this now."

"Sure you can!"

He pushed her away with some reluctance. "I don't have time for this. I need a clear head."

"There's no rule that says you get engage the services of a hooker in Vegas…" She said licking her lips as she winked at him. "Even the feds need a little distraction now and then."

"Not while I'm on the job. I'm not on my own time Angie. I have to stay focused."

He pushed her away from him. "You're very nice but I really have to get back to work. Thank you for the drink and the break."

He peeled her hands with long scarlet nails from his arm. "Here's my card. If you ever need anything, call me."

He pulled the key card out of the reader and entered his suite. "I'm sorry." He said over his shoulder and shut the door in her face.

//////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////

The yellow headlights from a solitary car lit the still form of Detective Hyde who lay in the middle of the lonely gravel road. They also illuminated the form of a man standing over him. Another set of footsteps approached the car. The first man turned and greeted the second man. They picked up the body of the detective and carried him to another car.

The first man opened the trunk of the car and they bundled the detective inside. The car sped off into the inky blackness of the night leaving the headlights of the Detectives car burning into the desolate stretches of the desert.

The light poured down from the square of floor over William Reid's head. He looked up, squinting against the glare of it. The same voice had been taunting him on and off, for what seemed like days.

"Hello William!"

"You're using my first name." William croaked. "Does that mean were best friends now?"

"Sarcastic to the end."

William's heart began to thump in his chest. Had his death come at last? Tears began to form in his eyes.

"Is that a bit of real emotion Billy-boy?"

"Shut up!"

"I'm not here to kill you, at least, not yet anyway. I'm just here to tell you that your son is proving to be much more amusing than you are."

"What have you _done_ to him?"

"Oh… he's just fine and he'll stay that way as long as you do as you're told."

"I don't know what you want."

"Mr. Parker wants his files back."

William shuddered as if a strong cold wind had whipped through the small dark underground room. Mason Parker wouldn't let him live if he gave up his only advantage. Spencer was smart enough to figure out the key to the files William had kept encrypted in his computer. He could find them and use them and everything would be okay.

"I'm not telling you anything." He whispered through parched lips.

Sweat poured off his face and down his back as he tried again to stand up and make a grab for the light over his head. Whoever had built this place had left at least a foot above his head to the ceiling of the room. He tried to leap up to the blurry face in front of him. A face he recognized now.

The other man began to chuckle at William Reid's struggles. "Sit down and think about your predicament Mr. Reid. Mr. Parker won't wait on you forever."

The face left William's sight and so did the light. He dropped back to the floor and pulled his legs up under his chin. There had to be some way to bargain his way out of here so he could end this and maybe make things right with his son.

///////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////

Reid's phone buzzed impatiently on the small beside table. He groaned, rolled over and picked it up.

"Reid."

"_You sound like you were sleeping." _

"I was Garcia. We hit some dead ends." He yawned trying to get the fuzzy - you just woke me up at an ungodly hour of the night feeling - out of his brain.

"_I've hit some dead ends too. Your dad has some wicked security on his computer. I can't break in without a password and figuring that out will be impossible as I can only get it wrong twice with this program. I need you to help me." _

"Garcia… It's after three in the morning. Don't you ever sleep?"

"_It's after six am here, sweet cheeks. I'm an early riser." _

"May I please go back to sleep."

"_You sound really irritated baby. What happened?"_

"Nothing…"

"_Well… I can't give you anything to help you out with your search if you don't help me with a password." _

Reid switched on the light and grabbed his robe. He got up and went into the living area of his room. He sat down on one of the enormous sofas and yawned again.

"What makes you think I have any idea about my father's passwords?"

"_Because you know him even if you don't want to admit it."_

He pushed a hand through his bangs and sighed. "I have to think about Garcia. I can't just come up with something out of the blue."

"_Why not? You always come through for us." _

"I know that Garcia. I don't need the pressure!"

"_Alright… I'll keep trying to find a way around the security." _

"Thanks Garcia."

"_You're welcome sweet cheeks. Call me when you think of something." _

He sat back in his seat and groaned. The clock on the DVD player read 3:17 am. His eyelids wanted to close again. He was so tired. If he could just get some rest then maybe his muddled brain could focus on trying to figure out the password for his father's computer.

A knock came at his door startling him into wakefulness as his eyes had been closing again. He went to the door and opened it to find Rossi, and two Nevada State Troopers.

"Detective Hyde is missing." Rossi said.


	10. More Clues, More Questions

**_Disclaimer: see my profile_**

**_A/n thanks again to all my loyal readers. You're the best. _**

**_More Clues, More Questions _**

"Who found the car?" Rossi asked the officer driving them out to the desert.

"A group of tourists coming out here to have a little party, it happens all the time."

Reid watched the moonlit landscape rush by as the SUV made its way down the bumpy dirt and gravel road toward an old rock quarry. The vehicle's light encountered three other police cars with their lights flashing blue and red. A team of crime scene techs had set up some large spotlights that lit up the scene like a movie set.

"How long ago was the car sighted?" Reid asked the officer.

"About three hours ago. The person that grabbed him left the lights on and one of the doors open." The officer ignored Reid and spoke to Rossi. The senior profiler noticed the attitude and scowled at the officer.

"Do you have a problem officer?" He asked irritably.

"It's just that everything was fine and then your friend here shows up asking questions. Now detective Hyde is missing!"

Rossi scowled as they left the truck. "Before we assume the two are connected, we need to look at the evidence."

"Well, if it isn't the feds." Captain Pemberton joined his officer as they headed to the abandoned police car. "Glad you could join us."

Rossi ignored the big man and began looking over the car. "What do you see Reid?"

"Well… The car's in good working order. He didn't stop out here, ten miles from the main road for car trouble. This quarry has been out of business since the late seventies. It's a popular make out and party area for the local young people." He gestured to the group of teenagers detained next to one of the police cruisers. "I'd say he was lured out here, perhaps on a tip that a party involving illegal drugs might be going on."

"Brilliant deduction Holmes… I wish I'd thought of that." Pemberton said.

"What's your problem?" Rossi asked. "You refuse to help us as a professional courtesy until your precious time elapses and then you call us out here because we had dealings with your detective last year."

"I didn't bring you two out here because I need the help of the FBI." Pemberton nearly spit as he took an envelope from a crime scene tech. "This was found on the dashboard of the car."

He handed it to Reid who'd just snapped on a pair of gloves. He opened the white envelope and pulled out a piece of ordinary white paper.

_If you want to know where your detective is, ask Dr. Spencer Reid._

"Just what do you have to do with my detective's disappearance?" The captain moved in on Reid forcing him back against the black and white. "Talk to me boy or I'll make you wish you'd never been born and all of my men will swear I never laid a hand on you."

"Enough!" Rossi grabbed the man and pulled him away from Reid. "Are you out of your mind?"

"I want to know what this skinny kid knows about one of my finest detectives."

"Your finest detective helped a man cover up a murder." Rossi said as Reid moved around to the other side of the car.

"There was no evidence of that ever brought out which is why he's still on the force." Pemberton shot back. "Anyway… Who cares about a twenty year old justifiable homicide of a pervert?"

"Someone does…" Reid said. "Otherwise they wouldn't have taken my father and your detective."

"What makes you think it's the same person."

"It's obvious!" Reid said with remarkable patience. "Read the note again Captain. This person is involving me in this and the only reason he would is because of my father and what happened to Riley Jenkins years ago."

"How can you tell from that?" Pembroke asked as all the other officers and techs stopped their work to watch the two men face off.

"Because it's in his handwriting, he knows something about what happened twenty years ago. The writer is male. He's very self assured, but also enraged. He wants me to tell you something that I can't because I don't have all the pieces of the puzzle yet. If I could call in my team they'd help us."

Pemberton went purple in the harsh white light. "Fine… Call in the rest of your team!"

"Are you ready to admit that something happened to my father?" Reid pressed keeping his dark eyes fixed only on Pemberton's face.

"Yes… I'll open the missing person's case and have our techs process your father's house."

"That won't be necessary." Rossi said. "Reid and I have already been in there."

Pemberton bristled. "I thought I told you…"

"I'm his son. He invited me to come and see him. I entered legally with the spare key. We'll have federal agents from the local office go in and look around." Reid interrupted the big man impatiently.

Pemberton swore and headed over to where the teenagers stood with two other detectives from the squad. Rossi smiled and patted Reid on the back. "You're making friends right and left."

"There's more to this than just my father having something incriminating on Mason Parker." Reid said in a low voice.

"I know… We need the rest of the team."

The sun was directly overhead as the jet touched down on the tarmac of McCarran International Airport. It taxied to a stop out of regular air traffic to meet a black SUV with Nevada plates.

Reid stood outside the truck wearing a white short-sleeved shirt, and sunglasses with his dark blue slacks. He didn't seem to be bothered that it was in the eighties, despite the fact that it was late March. JJ noticed this as she deplaned first and walked over to greet him. She thought he looked more at home here than in the hustle and bustle of DC, as though the desert was part of him.

"Hey Spence… Looks like you found more trouble for us."

"I didn't do it on purpose." He protested.

"You never do it on purpose." Emily said as she walked up to them.

"No, he's a magnet for trouble. It just follows him around." Morgan said by way of greeting.

Agent Arbogast took the wheel as the rest of the team climbed into the truck. Morgan and Garcia sat next to each other. Hotch took the passenger side next to Arbogast. Reid, JJ and Rossi took the very back of the vehicle.

"Nice to meet you," he said as JJ made introductions. "We've got a room set up for you at the field office."

"Why aren't we meeting with the detectives on the case?" Hotch asked.

"Because of the note at the scene," Rossi said. "Captain Pemberton is convinced Reid knows more than he's sharing. He admits that you have to be here, but he doesn't want you in the way at the station."

"That's going to make it hard to communicate." JJ stated the obvious from her seat next to Reid.

"You have such a talent for making friends." Morgan said over his shoulder to Reid.

"Shut up Morgan."

"This is our technical analyst Gabriella Martinez," Arbogast said, indicating a very thin, very short, black haired woman with the lightest blue eyes Garcia had ever seen. Her skin was the color of light coffee. Her face was heart shaped with a button nose. She smiled at Agent Arbogast as he introduced the team. "I assumed you'd like to set up in here." He asked Garcia.

"Yeah… I'm still working on William Reid's encrypted files.

"Oh…" Martinez's eyes lit up. "I'd love to get my hands on that."

"I'd appreciate the help." Garcia said as the two women beamed at each other.

"We've been watching him for a few months now in accordance with the Gaming Commission." Arbogast said. "There have been some interesting transactions going through the Venetian, especially around poker tournament time."

"What kind of transactions," Reid said looking interested.

"The kind of transactions, which if proven to the IRS, would get our Mr. Parker in a lot of trouble," Martinez said, rubbing her hands together in anticipation.

"Why don't the three of you go over the paperwork?" Hotch included Reid, "After Garcia brings us up to speed on Mason Parker."

"Okay…What I found out about our Mr. Parker fits his public image. You all probably know all this." She indicated to Arbogast and Martinez.

She filled them in as she set up her laptop on the metal table next to Martinez. "He's thirty years old, single, good looking and Nevada's most eligible bachelor. He was born and raised in Las Vegas. His parents are adoptive parents that he has lived with since he was ten years old. His adoption records are sealed, but I was able to determine that something traumatic happened to him as a nine-year-old boy. I was able to determine that he's been through extensive therapy. I can't give you a lot of details as there are seals on the medical records as well. He went to Harvard and majored in business. He built his business Parker Gaming from the ground up. He's got plenty of friends and enemies because of his success."

"Can I assume you can break the seals on his medical records and the adoption?" Hotch said.

"Wait… Are we allowed to do that?" Martinez asked with an eager gleam in her eye.

"I'll show you a few tricks." Garcia told her cracking her knuckles.

"Sweet!" The small woman nearly danced on the navy blue pumps she wore.

"Garcia, you come all the way out here just to corrupt an innocent FBI tech." Morgan said, his eyes dancing with mischief.

"Hey!" Martinez complained. "I'm far from innocent." She gave Garcia a high five.

"Nice," Morgan smirked. "Now you've created a monster."

"Can we get on to the profile?" Rossi interrupted the banter before Hotch.

"Do we need to give one?" Reid asked. "Isn't Parker our most viable suspect?"

"We can't get sidetracked by what your father might have known." Hotch reminded him. "We have to work these disappearances as if they don't have anything to do with Mason Parker or we might miss something."

The team had gathered at the large conference table. Reid faced a bank of sparkling clean windows that showed the strip, blue sky and white clouds in the afternoon sun. Someone had put tinted windows in to keep the intensity of the desert light to a minimum. What if his father and Detective Hyde were somewhere out in that sun… staked down like a couple of outlaws in an old western?

"Reid?"

"Sorry Hotch…"

"What did you find at your father's home?"

"We didn't find anything out of place. If someone was looking for the files he had, they did a good job of tossing the place without leaving any signs."

"Alright… Let's start over and talk about these two victims. What do they have in common?"

"They're around the same age. They live alone and they're both involved in the cover up of a murder." Morgan said.

"If we didn't have the connection of the cover up," Hotch asked. "Would we connect them to the same kidnapper?"

"No," Emily said. "They're different physical types. William Reid is a lawyer. Detective Hyde is a cop. Hyde doesn't have a family. William Reid has a family even if that family is estranged. They have different educational backgrounds. They're middle aged men working toward retirement."

"The motive isn't sexual," Morgan, said, "There's a mission and it's most likely related to the death of Riley Jenkins."

"Maybe we should go talk to Riley's father." Emily proposed.

"That's a good idea." Hotch said. "Garcia…"

"Mr. Jenkins's been a guest of the State of Nevada since his trial six months ago. The DA decided to make a deal with him rather than go to trial. He felt that the sympathy factor because of his son would affect the jury. The DA pled him down to voluntary manslaughter. He's got three years left on his sentence then he faces five years probation after his release."

"Emily… You and I will go to see him." Hotch said.

"What do you want Rossi and me to do?" Morgan asked.

"Go back to William Reid's law firm and talk to the partners. Then we need to have a sit down with Captain Pemberton and his men about detective Hyde."

Reid flipped through the photographs the federal CSI team had taken at his father's home. He looked for anything that might jog something out of his mind to help Garcia. He flipped past photos of his father's bookcase in the living room when something nibbled at his memory. It was the photo album and how he had seen it pulled out from the rest of the books.

"Garcia!"

"Yes baby cakes."

"I know the password for my father's files."


	11. Repercussions

**_Disclaimer: see my profile_**

**_A/n hello all... Here's the next chapter in the saga. Please enjoy!_**

**_Repercussions_**

Mason Parker dismissed his butler and other servants for the night thirty minutes after he returned from the party. He pulled off his tie and threw it down on the bed in disgust. The constant pandering was wearing hard on his patience. If he could tell just one of those stupid, simpering fools, what he thought of them instead of playing along with them in their rich and boring pursuits.

He turned on a soaring opera and began to sing "Nessum Dorma," in a rich tenor. The music only served to get on his last nerve rather than work soothing magic. He snapped off the I pod dock as he passed it to the huge walk in closet. The only thing that had him through the night was the knowledge that his plans were slowly falling into place.

He took off his clothes and hung them up precisely on their hangers in their proper place and order in the closet. He turned and went to the other side of the large area and opened a drawer. It held a pair of very old and faded jeans he wore only when he was sure of no disturbance. It wouldn't do to let the denizens of this wicked place see him out of his uniform. He removed another very old sweatshirt he'd inherited that had UNLV written across the front. He put it on along with white tube socks and an old dirty pair of running shoes.

He grabbed the keys to the light brown Honda Civic he kept parked in the old barn behind his house. He had the only keys to the old building. The servants had strict orders not to go within fifty feet of the place, but you could never be sure with people working for you.

He headed out of the bedroom and down the huge staircase that spiraled down to the first floor. The soles of his shoes squeaked on the black and white checkerboard tile of the entryway. He left boldly by the front door and shut it, locking it behind him. He walked around the house with only the moonlight to accompany him. He'd never been afraid of the dark as some people. He'd discovered that nothing in the dark matched his inherent darkness. He revealed in his self-awareness. Most people never recognized their dark potential. In a way, he had to thank his enemies for showing him all that he could be. He laughed aloud and the sound faded slowly away over the expanse of green grass as though tugged away on the tail of a kite.

He wanted to skip to his car like a little kid on the way to the county fair. The next step in his plan was about to be completed and he wanted to be there personally to look into the face of another traitor.

* * *

"_It's your turn Spencer." _

_He motioned his little son forward to bat. Spencer came forward reluctantly. Diana spoiled him, with books and poetry. Didn't she realize that the boy needed friends and normal activities?_

"_I don't want to play daddy." _

"_Spencer… Don't argue with me! It's your turn to bat." _

"_But daddy, mommy said I don't have to play!"_

"_Spencer!"_

_The small boy began to tear up and it made William angrier. Why couldn't his boy just participate in the game and learn the skills of teamwork he'd need when he went to school. Why did Diana have to interfere and take the boy's side against him? All he wanted to do was bond with his son and she refused to let him as though he might corrupt their boy._

"_Daddy, please help me." Spencer said from under his red cap. _

_Then, his face changed into another little boy. "Spencer?"_

_His son was gone as if the wind had blown his face away like sand before the wind. _

"_Riley! What are you doing? It's Spencer's turn up." _

"_Help me daddy," Riley said in Spencer's voice. He held up his small hands and William gasped. Red dripped from the child's hands and down the front of his team jersey. _

"_Riley!" _

"_Help me! He hurt me daddy. Why did you let him hurt me?" Spencer said. His face was back, but the blood remained._

"_Spencer… I didn't -" _

"_I just wanted you to love me daddy. I played ball for you." The little boy in front of him rippled and became his adult son. Scarlet blood dripped from his mouth and from the gaping wounds in his chest as he spoke. _

"_I just wanted you to have a normal life." _

_He tried to run to his son, but his feet were stuck in the ground as though in sticky mud, but the dirt was dry as a bone. _

"_I just wanted you to love me for who I am."_

"_I'm sorry Spencer. I love you son. I've always loved you and I'm so proud of you." _

_Spencer became little Riley again. The boy slowly sank to his knees as more dark red blood that was almost black ran from the wounds in his chest. "Help me daddy." _

"_I can't move Riley!"_

_Riley coughed and rolled over. His face had turned white as chalk except for the blood on his cheek and chin. "Daddy…" He closed his eyes and stopped breathing just as William's feet pulled free of the ground. _

_Riley's face and body became the adult Spencer. _

"_No!"_

_He ran to Spencer's side, dropping to his knees. "I'm sorry! I just wanted to do the right thing. I wanted to make sure you're safe."_

_Spencer's eyes opened and William fell back in utter shock. "It's your fault dad. You didn't believe mom. You never listened to her." _

"_Spencer…" _

William's eyes popped open. He sat up, his eye bulging into the darkness. "Let me out of here." He tried to shout, but his throat was so dry he couldn't speak.

His hand shot out feeling around for the plastic bottle of water left for him the last time the man had come to taunt him through the hole in the ceiling.

His hands finally closed over the now warm bottle of water. It had been half-full, the last time he'd taken a drink. He tried to make it last, but he was so thirsty. His tongue felt like someone had glued it to the roof of his mouth. He unscrewed the top off the bottle and brought it to his lips. The water was as warm as the air around him, but it tasted like ambrosia. He gulped it downfinishing it before he could stop himself, cursing his weakness.

_You've always been weak. This is just proof of that!_

Yeah… He'd always been weak. At least his heart had stopped pounding. The dream had scared him more than he could admit, but he'd have to keep that fear to himself. He had to trust that his son would figure out the pieces of the puzzle.

_You don't really think he'll just sit down and sing Kumbaya with you when all of this is over?"_

"I just want the chance to make it up to you." He tried to whisper against the dryness of his throat.

The tiny bit of water hadn't helped his thirst. Now it was worse than ever. He tried to stand but dizziness pushed him back to the dirt floor. He stumbled and fell with a thump on his left arm.

_When would his tormentor come back? Surely, they hadn't gone through all of this just to let him die! _

_It would serve you right!_

"I promise I'll do anything if I get out of here." He said to the darkness hoping that somehow his son would know.

The square of light opened up above him. He shielded his eyes as something thumped to the ground beside him. "Hey…" He croaked. "Let me out of here."

"You might want to look at that." The man's voice said. "Everything you see is your fault."

The square of light closed over his head. He reached out and snagged the bag. More bread and another two bottles of ice-cold water made his stomach burn with hunger and thirst. He managed not to suck down all the water in one gulp. The cold water was as sweet as time spent with the ones you love.

He felt around in the bag for a small digital video camera. He studied it for a long time. The man wanted him to watch this, which meant that he probably shouldn't look at it. He put it aside and sat up against the dirt walls. He sat staring into the darkness for a very long time before his curious hands picked up the camera.

_Look at it and find a clue, if there is something there for you to bargain with…. _

He turned it on, seeing that the battery seemed to be working. He dropped camera the video began to play. "Oh God… No… What did you do?" He tired to shout. "What did you do?"

* * *

Angie unlocked the door to the very nice suite Parker had paid for, and dropped her purse on the small table. She tossed her wrap onto the table and turned for the bedroom. The night had gone extremely well. Okay, so she'd struck out with Dr. Reid, but with a little more encouragement…

She had enough money now to buy her own home and retire if she wanted to thanks to this last deal. Perhaps now that she could get out of the sex work game she could pursue something more permanent with Dr. Reid.

"Hello…" A voice said to her right and around the corner to the living area. She screamed as a pair of hands clamped over her arms.

She relaxed at the familiar voice. "Why are you hiding?" She asked.

"You didn't do your job Angie. You failed…" He shook her so hard her teeth rattled.

"I tried," She attempted to pull away from him, but he held on tight. "It's not my fault he wasn't interested. If you give me more time…"

"Don't play games with me." He growled in her ear. "You were hired to do a job."

"Get your hands off me."

"I don't think so." He let go of her until she tried to run. He grabbed her again slapped her hard across the face. "I think it's time you remembered who pays your bills, you filthy little whore."

He punched her hard in the stomach. She doubled over, crying hard as he picked her up and strode down the hall to her bedroom. "You'll do as you're told."

"No!"

"It's far too late for that Angie darlin'."

He threw her down on the bed and pulled a switchblade knife from his pocket. "You need to be taught a lesson."

"Please!"

"Go ahead and beg. Scream if you want... I like it when you bitches scream. The walls here are nice and soundprooffed. The boss made special modifications to them, so go ahead and scream."

He unzipped his pants and pulled his shirt over his head.

"No!"

"Whores don't get to say no baby."

She screamed and he laughed as he drew the knife across her face leaving a thin line that began to bleed. "Please…"

"It's too late for that. You're going to help me teach Dr Reid a lesson."

He kicked off his shoes, dropped his jeans, boxers and fell on her.


	12. Good News, Bad News

**_Disclaimer: see my profile_**

**_A/n here's the next chapter lovelies_**

**_Good News, Bad News_**

"I think I know the password to my father's encrypted files."

"Well… Be still my heart, sweet thing! What is it already?" Garcia flexed anxious fingers on her keyboard, like an over excited concert pianist at his first paying job.

"Rossi and I took a look at my dad's photo albums. He had a photograph in there, which looked out of place to me. It was right next to an old picture of me when I played T-ball. I couldn't understand why it was there because it was a newer clipping from a newspaper. Then I saw the name and the date under the photograph and I -"

"Is there a point to all of this?" Garcia interrupted tapping her fingers impatiently on the metal table holding her laptop, "While we're _young _sweet cheeks."

"Oh right… Sorry, so the name was Kier Jennsley."

Garcia entered the name into her computer and the file opened. "Just like magic," she said excitedly.

Martinez and Reid began reading the file over her shoulder. "Well son of a bitch!" Garcia said.

"I feel like Christmas has come early." Martinez said, doing a nice little two step happy dance around the table while Garcia smirked at her."

"The question is… What do we do with this?" Reid asked looking a bit, as if someone had knocked him over the head with a rock.

"I'll get started on it right away." Martinez said. "I compare this to the figures we've pieced together over the last five years. With any luck, we'll have enough to close this once and for all."

"And enough to use as leverage to find your dad." Garcia added.

"I hope you're right." Reid said.

"Don't worry my handsome G-man. If it can be done, Garcia can do it." His friend assured him.

"There's no humility in your family." Martinez quipped.

"I'll forgive you for that because you have the first piece to the puzzle" Garcia responded as the other woman returned to her seat.

"What can I do?" Reid.

"How's your math?" Martinez asked.

Garcia laughed. "You obviously don't know him. He's got a PhD in Mathematics."

"That's fine, but what about you're Forensic accounting skills." She challenged with one eyebrow raised.

"I'll do my best!" He assured her, taking a chair next to her computer.

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The trip from the local bureau office, to High Desert State Adult Correctional Facility, took much longer than Hotch anticipated. His hands dug into the steering wheel nearly leaving marks by the time they entered the driveway to the center.

Sunlight reflected off windows of the prison and the white-gold sand around the huge facility. The mountains in the distance seemed so far away as to be indistinct outlines along a blue-purple sky. He parked at the south end of the parking lot as directed by the guard at the station.

"This is a cheery place." Emily quipped as she got out of the car and pushed at her black framed sunglasses.

Hotch didn't reply. She followed him to the gate and met the guard sent to escort them to the warden's office. He suppressed a shudder that always accompanied going into a place like this. Even though they entered the minimum-security wing, he went on instant alert.

The wing was relatively quiet as the guard led them along the concrete hall to the office of the Warden. "The feds are here." He said sticking his head in the office after giving a curt nod.

Warden Curtis stood up from behind his institutional metal desk. He was very thin, with a prominent Adams apple and limbs that looked like they'd stopped getting along in puberty. His thinning red hair and the glasses covering his light green eyes, made him look more like a college professor.

"I wish you would have called ahead." He told them without the usual greeting.

"I wondered why we were brought here first. " Hotch said. "What happened?"

"Lou Jenkins is dead. One of the inmates shanked him in the breakfast line."

"What the hell happened?" Emily asked.

"I don't know… I have the man responsible in solitary, but he refuses to talk."

"Why don't you let us have a chat with him?" Hotch said.

"I'd like nothing better. He's been nothing but trouble since he crossed these walls a year ago. I'll take you to him."

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Morgan and Rossi pulled up to the entrance of William Reid's office. It was still early so the door was locked when they tried it. They went back to the truck and waited for fifteen minutes until a black Mercedes parked three spaces away.

A tall man exited the car. He looked like he could have been a football player in his youth but he had lost his hard body edge. His belly hung over the belt around his dark blue slacks as he got out of his car. He didn't seem to notice their SUV, as he didn't look their way before taking the keys out of his wallet for the front door.

Rossi left the SUV and confronted him with Morgan in tow as the man was about to enter the building. "Are you Howard Wieder?"

"Yes…" He didn't bat an eyelash at the badge. "What can I do for the FBI?"

"Do you always come into the office at seven 7:30 in the morning?"

"Yes!" Annoyance crept into the man's voice. "What can I do for you? I'm a very busy man." Sweat was beginning to roll down his face despite the relative coolness of the air.

"Why don't we go inside?" Rossi said gesturing to the door.

The lawyer looked like he wanted to argue. Instead, he said. "I'm not answering any question about a going investigation. Attorney client privilege," he said smugly.

"We're here to talk to you about William Reid."

Wieder visibly relaxed, but his iron-grey eyes remained wary as he led them into the building. "William's one of my best associates. He's up for partner. He would have made partner over a year ago if not for his involvement with Louis Jenkins."

"We don't care about his record as a lawyer." Morgan told Wieder. "We're here because we have reason to believe that William Reid has disappeared."

Wieder stopped in the act of opening the double doors to the office from the lobby. "What are you talking about?"

"His son received a frantic call from him three days ago. Since then, no one has seen him. We were told yesterday by your firm that William Reid is out of town in Reno for a week."

Wieder stopped in front of his office door. "William asked for a few days to take care of some family matters."

"So you don't have any clients in Reno."

"You know I can't tell you that."

He gestured for them to take seat across from his huge, highly polished oak desk. He took the chair and put his hands on the blotter. Despite his partially bald and graying head, he looked like the formidable lawyer he was behind the desk.

"It's not a violation of client privilege to confirm if one of your associates is out of town on business."

"I just told you he asked for personal time. You're testing my patience gentlemen. I don't like the Bureau coming in here and throwing its weight around."

"Where were you three nights ago after 5 pm?"

"I'm not answering any questions without my representative present."

"Do you really want to go there?" Rossi said sitting back comfortably in one of the wing backed, chocolate leather covered chairs.

"You know how this works." The lawyer retorted. "If you want my help you'll wait for my partner Jeffrey Moore to show up. He'll be here in just a few minutes."

"Fine…" Morgan leaned forward in his chair. "We'll wait for as long as it takes."

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Angie tried to raise her head, but something ground together in her side and she screamed in pain. The world wavered around in her eyes. Her throat hurt horribly along with her right eyes. Someone had used her face for a punching bag. What john had done it this time?

_Spencer Reid?_

No! She'd left him last night alone and fully clothed. She turned slowly to right side as tears slid down her face. Suddenly her heart rate spiked up and her breathing began to hitch in her throat. The memory of her attacker slammed back into her mind. She twisted her head around trying to see if he'd lingered in the room.

She couldn't see around the room and it hurt too much to stand up. Oh god… She needed help, but calling the police was out of the question. She'd have to tell them everything she'd done. She couldn't tell them who was responsible for her rape and beating. They wouldn't believe she'd been raped anyway. The cops didn't believe it was possible to rape prostitute. She cried harder, groaning against the pain that seemed to be everywhere.

There had to be someone she could call. Then she remembered that Spencer had given her his card. He'd been so sweet and nice that evening. He hadn't treated her like a hooker. He's a fed. She could trust him. What if he didn't want to help?

"I'm sorry…" She whispered into the empty room. "I didn't mean to hurt you. Please don't turn your back on me."

She began to cry again. He'd hate her if she told him the truth. That she'd been assigned to distract him from his investigation. She lay on her side, pain thumping in her head. Blood rolled out of her nose and into her mouth making her stomach roll with its coppery taste.

She pushed herself up and slid over to the phone on the table. She had to try to call. She would make it up to Spencer if he'd listen to her and help her.

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Agent Arbogast pushed the last of his breakfast donut into his mouth and picked up his cup of coffee. Dr. Reid and his team had stayed working the night. He envied them their stamina, but he also liked going home to his wife and three-year-old daughter. He looked at the photograph of them on his little desk. Janie looked just like her mother, blond and blue eyed and beautiful. He'd been so lucky to convince Sharon that he loved her and wanted to spend the rest of his life with her.

His phone beeped just as he swallowed the last of the donut. "Arbogast… What? No, damn it… I'll let Dr Reid know personally. Keep this quiet! No! I told you to keep a lid on it no matter what you have to do. The press can't get wind of this."

He slapped his phone shut and jumped up from his desk. Dr. Reid and SSA Hotchner weren't going to like this news at all!


	13. Hackers versus The Genius

**_Disclaimer: see my profile_**

**_A/n here's the next chapter for all my faithful readers. You're the best people. _**

**_Hackers versus The Genius _**

Screams of pain and pleas for mercy filled William's small, black, and filthy prison. The smashing of fists on flesh and the cracking of bones had no filter as William watched the footage on the small video camera the voice had left for him. He wanted to turn off the picture, but a strange horrifying fascination took him over.

"Say it!" The familiar voice sent chills flooded William's stomach.

"No!" The second man's voice pleaded.

"Say it…" The beaten man's head rocked on his shoulders like a bobble-headed doll as the first man slammed his fist into his face. "Say it and I'll let you go."

"It's my fault," The bloodied and broken man said looking at someone off camera. "I helped him."

A muffled voice spoke again further away as the shadowy figure had moved off camera. "Very good Detective Hyde."

"Please…"

"Don't worry… I said I'd end your pain and I will."

The gunshot happened so fast that William's head jerked back and hit the wall behind him. Tears collected in his eyes from the unexpected pain and the cold-blooded murder he had just witnessed. Then the shadowed figure bent down and showed his face to William.

"You're responsible for his death. You both helped cover up another death. I am coming for you next, William Reid! There's just a couple more people I need to invite to the party."

William sucked in his breath coughed at the endless dust in the air. More tears trickled down his cheeks. He wiped them away with filthy fingers in the blue light of the video.

"What will your son think of you when he realizes you're responsible for two other deaths?"

The screen went black with the small room around William. He threw the video recorder hard across the room, hearing it crack against the concrete hard surface of the wall.

"Let me out of here?" He screamed up at the door in the ceiling. "I'm done playing your game. If you're going to kill me, then get it over with." He tried to stand up, but his legs hurt like fire from days of inactivity. He fell back against the wall and slammed a fist into the dirt.

The light over his head came back. "If you wanted to leave Mr. Reid... All you had to do was ask."

* * *

Reid pushed the folder he studied over to Martinez. "What do you make of that?" He asked.

"I thought you were the mathematical genius." She quipped, her lovely blue eyes twinkling at him.

He swallowed hard against the little shivers quivering in the pit of his stomach. _Concentrate on your dad. You have to find him and Detective Hyde!_

"Well… Um, I don't understand why you're looking into the charge made at the hotel during the poker tournaments over the last five years.

"What do you know about credit cards?"

"Well… There're two types of cards personal and small business. All the big issuers have both types on their books. They are signature loans given out based on an individual's credit since there's no backing collateral. American Express has charge cards that you have to pay off at the end of every thirty-day cycle.

"Very good… Martinez nodded at him like he was the prize student. "We've been tracking the charges made at the hotel with the cooperation of the big credit card companies. They have scanners that log and process every charge that comes through the system. Every card issuer is different. They look for different things in spending patterns. They can detect fraud or the intent of fraud by what they call 'out of pattern spending.' So let's say that you have a Visa card you use for gas and groceries or the occasional movie. You might buy videos or books too. All the information is logged by the company's computer, and added to a pattern or a profile if you will. Therefore, if you suddenly deviate from that pattern, and buy a lot of expensive stuff or merchandise you would not normally buy, they'll call you or even freeze they account until they hear from you and know you have the card in your hand. " Gabriella winked at Reid as she finished her mini lesson on credit.

"Flirt on your own time you two." Garcia said irritably from her station.

"We're not flirting…" Reid squeaked.

"Speak for yourself," Gabriella disagreed. "Personally, I don't know how you work around such gorgeous men," she continued as Reid went pink in the cheeks. "You've got fine examples of male hotness all around you and you can concentrate."

"I've become immune to all of their charms." Garcia said, but she winked at Reid.

"I saw that, something you want to share with the class."

"No!"

"Okay, so here's what I think." Martinez went back to business with a grin at Reid who buried his face in his file. "Banks have to adhere to strict federal regulations to prevent money laundering activities. Anti-terrorism measures are included in there procedures as well. For instance… If you deposit over five K or buy a certified check or money order for over that amount, the bank has to fill out a report. What terrorists or organized crime does, is buy money orders or make purchases for merchandise it can sell to lauder profits from prostitution, gambling, drugs and other illegal activities. They set up phony small businesses to hide the money too."

"So what does that have to do with what we're looking for here?"

"Do you see a pattern?"

Reid took all her paperwork and began to read it so fast, she wondered if he were showing off for her benefit. If so, it was working. She had always been attracted to the smart, bookish type with out of the ordinary looks.

Reid looked up after about five minutes with a new light in his eyes. "I would say that my dad was on to something thanks to Lily Camden."

"How did Ms Camden get all of this to your dad?"

"According to the file he sent to me, she contacted him. She was very upset, wouldn't talk on the phone. She made him meet with her in one of the seedier casinos and she told him about how Mason Parker had seduced her. She fell in love with him and would have done anything for him until she stumbled on to some computer files that outlined all of the criminal activities at the Venetian and she found something huge that Mason Parker intended to do to my dad and others involved in the Riley Jenkins murder."

"I heard about that on the news."

"Yeah… Lou Jenkins took the law into his own hands and killed his child's killer. My father helped cover it up to keep my mother and me safe. Detective Hyde was in on the whole thing too. Now my father and the detective are missing."

"Why Mason Parker? What does he have to gain by revenge on a grieving father and his friends? It's not like he knew the killer."

"I don't know. My father's files don't go into that, just this financial data. Lily Camden must have been found out and she was killed."

"Alright… What have you found?"

"Well," Reid said. "You see these numbers here and here."

Martinez followed his long finger back and forth over the columns of number. "Yes… but I don't see -"

"He's using the yearly poker tournament to launder a large portion of funds." He pointed out to her

"Yeah... I think I see it. There're deposits from the accounts used by his company to another company called Jenkins Imports International."

"Would he be that bold?" Garcia inquired.

"Why would anyone question the name? Jenkins is a common name. We're the only ones that associate anything with it because or what happened to Riley." Reid said.

"You're right. What do we do know?"

"The shell company funds lead from there to a bunch of real estate holdings that include the old gravel pit where detective Hyde's car was found."

"He wouldn't be that stupid, would he?" Martinez asked.

"If he has a strong enough motive for this, he's not going to care. He wants us to find him. He wants me to find him. He wants me to know who he is." Reid said.

"How do you know?" Martinez asked, her eyes narrowing.

"All of this is about Riley Jenkins. It stands to reason that I'm the next target on his list."

"Then it's a good thing you're in here where I and the rest of the G-men can keep an eye on you."

"I don't need a babysitter Garcia. It's my dad out there and Detective Hyde."

Garcia began to laugh in a way that made Gabriella Martinez stare at her as if she had lost her mind. "You… _Not_ need a babysitter, don't make me laugh."

"I can take care of myself. Morgan's been teaching me to shoot and hand to hand. I'm pretty good now." The young agent said proudly as the two techs smirked at him.

"You don't know this one." Garcia said to her new hacking buddy. "He can find more trouble in a day than most of us can find in a life time."

"Really? Do tell." Gabriella demanded, her eyes lighting up like stars.

"No! Don't tell." Reid said going scarlet.

At the same time, Reid's phone rang and so did Garcia's. "Hello," they said at exactly the same time making Martinez smirk.

Her smile faded at the equal looks of horror and apprehension on their faces. She tried to listen but couldn't hear both conversations at once.

"What?" She inquired as they ended their conversations.

"They found detective Hyde."

"Lou Jenkins is dead!"

They said at the same time.

Reid's phone rang again and he answered it with the attitude of a man trying to disarm a bomb that was about to blow up in his face. "Reid."

"Spencer!"

The voice was so familiar. Where had he heard it? "Yes… Who is this please?"

"It's Angie," said the voice in a barely audible whisper. "Help me."

"Angie."

"Please Spencer… I can't move."

"Angie… Where are you?"

"The Venetian… sixteenth floor. Please come help me."

The phone suddenly went dead."

"Reid!" Garcia said. "What is it?"

"I need to go."

Martinez stood up at the same time as Garcia. Martinez moved to block his way to the door. "You can't leave here. You said yourself you're next on the list. Wait for your team to get back."

"That was a… Angie, um she's a friend. She needs my help. She's at my hotel. I'm sure I'll be fine."

"Take one of the agents with you." Garcia said. "Or better yet, wait until Morgan gets back."

"I think she's hurt. I have to go."

"Why? Who is this girl that you'd just run out of the safest place in Vegas right now."

"I told you she's a friend."

She took in the pleading puppy dog look and glared at him. He always got what he wanted from them with those eyes.

"Fine… but if anything happens to you, I'll bring you back from the dead and kill you."

"Agreed." He smiled.

* * *

The burly man with greasy blond hair threw William Reid into a chair in front of a very old kitchen table with a chipped finished. The bright yellow lights over his head made his eyes water. He couldn't sit up straight because of the pain in his ribs and his back. His legs felt like lead and his head hurt so bad it was like someone driving spikes into his brain by way of his eyes.

"Stay put…" The huge man growled down at him.

"Shut up!" William said.

The big man hit him across the face making the pain in his head explode into complete agony. "Keep it up and there's more where that came from."

"Carl…" The familiar silky voice said from William's right. "Leave us alone."

William moved his head and nausea threatened to overwhelm his throat. He looked up through dizzy eyes to see Mason Parker standing over him. "It's nice to know that you're so predictable." He said to his captive. "I knew you wouldn't tell anyone about what Lily discovered about me. You'd go right to your son with the almighty FBI. You didn't trust the police twenty years ago and you don't trust them now. It makes this easier."

"What are you going to do?"

"We'll wait for your son to get here."

"Leave him out of this."

"I don't think so. You see he's going to be the one to take care of you for me."

"What do you mean?" Fear began pushing through William's blood like ice water.

"Now that would spoil all the fun." Mason said. "Let's just wait for him and find out."


	14. If it's not one thing, it's another

**_Disclaimer: see my profile_**

**_A/n here's another chapter for my wonderful readers. Thanks for all your kind reviews _**

**_If it's not one thing, it's another!_**

"Garcia… will you trace a number for me? The cell number is 702-555-6497," He rattled off to her as her fingers skipped over the keys like flat stones over the surface of a pond.

"Got it… That phone's at 3355 Las Vegas Blvd South."

"The Venetian," Reid said.

"Yeah! Where you and Rossi have been staying, it's owned by Mason Parker." She informed him.

"I know… I checked into it."

She gaped at him behind ruby red frames. "You can't go there on your own."

"I need to go." Reid picked up his messenger bag.

"What are you talking about?" Garcia stood up and blocked his way out of the makeshift computer room. "There's a crazy man out there with some kind of vendetta against you and your dad."

"We don't know that for sure." He backed away from the anger brewing in her dark eyes.

"You _heard_ what I said. Lou Jenkins is dead! Your father is missing and now you want to run out of here alone." She spoke as one who can't believe the evidence of her ears as she stepped forward to drill her finger into his wine colored sweater vest.

"I'm just going back to my hotel." He looked from her finger to her face and back again.

"The hotel's owned by Mason Parker." She said, exasperation clouding her face. "Are you out of your mind?" Her hands fisted on her hips and her eyes blazed behind her glasses.

"Garcia… I promise I'll check in as soon as I get there. I have a friend in trouble." He repeated.

"Fine, but if you don't call as soon as you step through the door, I'll make you wish you'd never crossed me."

He grinned at her. "You don't scare me Garcia."

"I'll sic Morgan on you." She threatened. "If Hotch leaves anything left to get after he finds out."

"Garcia!"

She stood aside and let him go.

"What did you do that for?" Martinez said from her station. "You all said he can't stay out of trouble."

"There's one thing I've learned about Spencer Reid. You can't tell him what to do."

"Are you going to call your bosses?" Martinez asked as she continued to pour over the files they'd printed out from William Reid's computer files. She turned around and looked directly at Garcia. "We should send some help."

"I'm going to track his phone. If he doesn't call us after he gets to the hotel, we'll send help."

"I hope you're right." Martinez said.

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Rossi and Morgan left William's office with nothing but two thumping headaches. William's boss had shut down and when his partner showed up, the conversation had effectively ended.

"That was a waste of time." Morgan growled as they traveled back to the FBI field office through the golden desert sunlight.

"No… At least we know they don't have anything to with Mr. Reid's disappearance."

"Yeah… They're deathly afraid of Mason Parker, that's for sure." Rossi mused. "Maybe it's time we went to see him."

"You're right! I'm calling Hotch." Morgan said.

He'd just pulled his cell phone off the hook on his belt when it beeped. "Talk to me." He answered.

Rossi glanced over at his partner as Morgan talked to Hotch.

"What?" Morgan said. "When? What the hell happened? Okay… We'll meet you there."

Rossi turned his eyes, covered with dark glasses on the man next to him as Morgan slammed the phone shut and hit the innocent car door with his free hand. "Hotch said Lou Jenkins is dead and they found Detective Hyde. He's dead. He wants us to meet him at the FBI field office."

"Then we better get a move on."

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Emily and Hotch pulled up to the Federal building ten minutes before Rossi and Morgan made it back. They'd gathered in the conference room with Garcia and Martinez. The two women, one dressed in a bright red peasant, blouse, and a pink skirt with red and pink-strapped sandals on her feet. The other, wearing a dark blue suit jacket, skirt and a white blouse huddled around a laptop trying to be invisible.

Hotch glowered blackly as the two men entered the conference room. "Reid's gone off on his own." He informed them looking angry enough to trip the President if he passed him on the street.

Morgan rubbed a hand over his baldhead looking like he wanted to put his fist through the nearest wall. JJ strode into the room as they all began to talk at once. "We've got a real problem on our hands. Someone leaked the news of Jenkins and Hyde's death to the press. They have William Reid's name mixed up in it!"

She turned on a television in one corner of the room. A vivacious red head stood in front of High Desert State Men's Correctional Facility with a microphone in her hand. She had the look of someone that was trying to be sober, but couldn't contain her happiness at such a juicy story.

"Yes Clay…" She was saying to the off camera anchor man of the Channel 5 news. "The reports are pretty sketchy right now. We do know that Lou Jenkins, convicted of manslaughter in the death of Gary Michaels - the man who was allegedly responsible for the death of Riley Jenkins - was killed right here in this correctional facility. The warden is declining comment, but we are told by a source close to the warden that Lou Jenkins died because of a shank wound to his abdomen. Jenkins had four years left on his sentence.

"Summer…" The anchor asked, "Is there any word on the possible connection of this death with that of Detective Steven Hyde, whose body was found in his home this morning."

"No… We only know that Detective Hyde had gone missing last night. Less than eight hours later his body turned up at his home, badly beaten and shot."

"What about William Reid, the attorney associated with Lou Jenkins and Detective Hyde?"

"Well Clay, the Las Vegas police are talking, but our sources tell us that William Reid went missing two days ago."

"Do the police have any leads Summer?"

"No… As with last year, there's no evidence tying these three men together."

"Enough!" Morgan barked.

"He's right," Hotch, sighed as he looked away from the screen. "Garcia said that Reid went back to the Venetian Hotel. He said a friend was in trouble."

"What friend" Emily asked as they headed for the door.

"I don't know… Let's just get over there before he manages to get into more trouble." Morgan said testily.

Gabriella touched Garcia's arm as they stood staring after the retreating team. "What now?"

"We wait…"

Gabriella gaped at her new friend. "How can you just sit there and wait?"

Garcia went back to her computer searches with renewed energy despite her exhausted eyes. The seal on Mason Parker's records was proving much more difficult than it should have been.

"We wait," She said, "because there's nothing else to do but try to find something to help the team." She looked back up at the smaller, dark haired woman who looked like a fed from head to toe. "You've been with the bureau for how long?"

"Three years…"

"You should be used to it."

"I'm not! I'm just an analyst and nothing very exciting happens here, except for organized crime involved in the gambling industry."

"Then you'll have to learn the hard way." Garcia said distractedly.

Gabriella sat back in her chair and pursed her lips. If this was, what it was like for the profilers all the time… She shook out her hair and began working on another way to cut through the files concerning the scumbag known as Mason Parker.

Reid opened the door to suite 1602 with the key card from the front desk. It was remarkable what flashing his badge could get him from most people.

He went slowly with his gun out in front of him, clearing the rooms before calling out to her. The bedroom was on the exact opposite of where the door would have been from his suite in the same hotel. He crossed to the door and opened it carefully with his free hand. He flipped on the light and nearly dropped his gun.

"Angie…" He squeaked.

She lay on top of her bed. The bedspread and sheets were in complete disarray and spotted with bright red blood.

"Angie…" He looked in the closet and attaching bathroom before holstering his weapon and pulling out his phone. "This is Agent Reid of the FBI. I need an ambulance at the Venetian Hotel Room 1602."

He dropped his phone and bent over to feel her neck. "Angie!" He called out to her. "Can you hear me?"

"Spencer…" She said, slurring his name as she opened one blackened eye.

"Yes… Who did this to you?"

"Hurts…" She coughed. "Help me!" She whispered as dark red blood trickled out of her mouth.

His hands wanted to turn her over to her back, but he knew he couldn't move her. "Who did this to you?" He repeated.

"H-hank!" She coughed, expelling more blood onto the light blue sheets.

"Who's Hank?"

She closed her eyes.

"Stay with me Angie!"

"He's Mason Parker's thug." She swallowed thickly. "I'm so sorry Spencer." She coughed, and more tears trickled down her face. "He…" She closed her eyes.

"Come on Angie… Listen to the sound of my voice."

Her eyes suddenly opened and bored straight into his with a fiery light. "He wants to kill you Spencer. I swear I didn't know." She gripped his hand so tight, it felt like she might pull it from his wrist. "I was supposed to distract you."

She coughed. "I'm so sorry…"

"Don't talk; the ambulance will be here soon. Just focus on my face."

He sat down next to her on the bed as she groaned in pain from the numerous blows to her body and face that he could see. She was tangled in the sheets so he couldn't see her nearly nude body. Nevertheless, he kept his eyes on her face and her glassy eyes.

"I really liked you Spencer. I didn't do what he wanted me to do, so he sent Hank after me."

"Did he…" He began to stammer out.

"Yes…"

"Why? What did I do to him?"

"I don't know. Be careful Spencer. Mason Parker will come for you."

She whispered something he didn't hear. "What?"

He put his head down to her lips and she spoke in his ear.

"I don't understand."

She didn't speak. She didn't move or cry. He put trembling fingers to her neck searching for the pulse that wasn't there.

"Don't you go?" He screamed at her.

He pushed her over on her back, heedless of more damage to her body. He lifted her head and opened her mouth checking to see that her airway was clear before beginning CPR. He climbed onto the bed to kneel next to her body. He counted out chest compressions. One, Two, Three, Four Five.

The only thing he could think of was the fact that CPR was only effective seventeen percent of the time outside the hospital. Time passed as he breathed for her and did chest compressions. His arms and upper back ached and burned. He didn't hear the paramedics enter the room with Hotch and Morgan, who'd arrived at the same time.

Someone pulled him away from her. He could hear the medics talking to one another as they set up to shock her heart back into operation. He watched, not hearing Morgan trying to talk to him as they tried to get her back, but it was too late.

"Call it!'

"NO!"

"Reid!"

Someone pulled him out of the bedroom and pushed him down into the living room sofa. "Reid, tell us what happened." Rossi snapped clenching his arm. "What did she tell you?"

"It's my fault… All of this is my fault."

"Stop wallowing Agent Reid and talk to me."

"Back off Rossi." Morgan said.

"No! He knew this woman. We met up with her in an elevator last night. I don't think it was an accident."

"Reid…" Emily took a seat next to him on the couch and grabbed on of his hands. "What happened in here?"

"She… She said that one of Mason Parker's men d-did this." He clenched Emily's hand hard enough to hurt. "He-he hired her to distract and watch me. She didn't do what he wanted her to do, so he sent someone to rape and kill her."

"It's not your fault Reid," Emily said.

"Emily I -" His phone buzzed in Hotch's hand, who'd picked it up from next to the bed.

"This is A-agent R-reid!" He stammered.


	15. Another Pawn enters the Game

**_Disclaimer: see my profile_**

**_a/n as always, thanks to my faithful reader. Here's the next chapter._**

**_Another Pawn enters the Game_**

"Reid…" He said."

"Hey there," JJ said.

"What's wrong?" He asked getting up to go to the entryway of the suite and away from the pity and concern radiating from Emily and Morgan.

"I wanted to give you a head's up. The media got hold of your name. I'm trying to spin it for you, but they smell blood in the water."

"I can handle it JJ."

"You wouldn't say that if you knew what they're saying about you and your father."

"I don't care what they're saying JJ. I have a job to do. There's a dead woman here. It won't be long till your friends in the press get wind of it."

He heard her sharp intake of breath. "What happened?"

"Do you remember the hooker Morgan teased me about after the Riley Jenkins case?"

"No… I was on maternity leave." The badly hidden curiosity in her voice made him smile just a little.

"I'll tell you all about it later. I ran into her again. It turns out that our meeting again wasn't an accident. She was working for Mason Parker. She was supposed to distract me."

"Distract you how?"

"It's not funny JJ…"

"I'm sorry."

"We came back to my room last night at the same time Detective Hyde went missing."

"What happened?" JJ interrupted.

"Nothing… We talked, played a little poker and she left less than hour later."

"If you say so."

"One of Mason Parker's men, and man called Hank beat her up and raped her for not seducing me." He said flatly and angrily. "She's dead because of me!"

"No!" She responded loudly.

"Don't shout at me JJ."

"You always blame yourself Spence. She was working for the man that may have your father and may have killed Detective Hyde and Lily Camden. This is not your fault. I'll shout until you get that."

He held onto the phone, feeling like someone had released the band around his chest that hadn't let him breathe since the paramedics had called her time of death.

"Spence!"

"I'm okay JJ… Can you keep this under wraps?"

"I'll do what I can."

He hung up his phone and headed back into the bedroom. He saw that Hotch, 2 uniformed officers and the medics crowded the small space around the bed.

"Let us by please." A female voice said from behind him.

He let a medium sized black woman with short curly hair into the room with another man in plain clothes who ignored Reid and addressed Hotch. "I'm Dr. Henry Rollins, the ME, and this is Detective Sand." He gestured to the African American woman.

"Were you first on scene," She asked the young blond office that looked like it was his first day out of the academy. "Yes…"

"What's your name?"

"Rogers, um, Daniel Rogers."

"What did you see?"

Reid listened to them discuss Angie as though she were just another hooker killed by an overenthusiastic john. He saw the moment when his name came into the conversation, but ignored it when Hotch stopped her from drawing him into the conversation.

The last thing Angie said to him wouldn't leave him alone. It filled his ears so that he couldn't think straight except for her words. What did it all mean? He looked back at Hotch, the detective and the ME, everyone seemed to be engrossed in Angie' death. That was a good thing, but he felt like he had landed in the middle of a hurricane. Voices rose and fell around him. The zipper on the black body bag with the beeping of the medics' radio and Hotch's voice talking to the police began to swirl around him.

He turned his face to the blank, white wall across from the blood-splattered wall and projected on it, the file his father had sent to him. More documents from the financial files joined the file, as did the crime scene photos of Lily Camden and the press photographs of Mason Parker.

All of it began moving around on the wall as though his hands pushed it around trying to solve the puzzle. He moved the letter to the middle, but no, that wasn't the right place for it. His eidetic memory pushed it aside and put the financial and real estate documents to the forefront, but they didn't help. Finally, he pushed the face of Mason Parker to the front and studied it while everything else receded into the background, including the voices. He walked closer to the wall, avoiding the body bag the way you put on your shoes without looking down.

Mason Parker… There was something in his face when he looked at him. It was something familiar that he'd seen before.

_I don't want to see that face again._

He shook his head a pulled the old memory out of his brain despite the voice of panic rising in his head. It was over!

_No, it's not over!_

He put the face from his memory next to the face on the wall… and jumped when someone put a hand on his shoulder and shook him hard. "Reid!"

He blinked and everything disappeared from the white wall that had become like a movie screen for him. "We have to go back to the field office now." He said to Hotch who stood behind him with Detective Sand.

"I need to get your statement." She demanded.

"We're not doing this here." Hotch put a hand on her shoulder to hold her back from Reid.

"You man may be a federal agent, but that doesn't mean he doesn't have some questions to answer. He was the last one to see this woman alive." She stated the obvious and something in her eyes had Hotch glowering.

"Dr. Reid didn't kill this woman."

"I can't take your word for that." The detective said with a bitter laugh.

"You better take it…" Morgan began as he advanced on her.

"Back off Morgan!" Hotch stopped the angry man with a look. "I said we'd talk about this at the field office."

"You better be right about him." She jerked her thumb at Reid. "I don't give people a pass based on who they know, or who they work for.

"Come with us… If I'm right about something, I'll be able to hand you Mason Parker." Reid said dully.

He walked away from her. He didn't hear her swear in a way that would make a sailor proud. Suddenly he couldn't be there anymore. He needed Garcia's talents.

Garcia was about to pick up her phone when the team entered the conference room. The site of her baby boy alive and well pushed everything out of her mind for a few moments.

"Don't you ever scare me like that again?" She scolded him.

"I had to go help her." Reid squeaked. "I'm sorry."

"You owe me."

"Later… Can you bring up the old news photo of Gary Michaels and the recent press files photographs of Mason Parker?"

"Reid… Where are you going with this?" Rossi asked.

"Look at the photographs."

They all looked at the photographs with varying degrees of confusion and anger on the part of Detective Sand who had stormed into the room with them. "What's he talking about?" She snapped.

Hotch turned his glower on her. "Let him work it out." He said loudly.

"I don't have time for -"

"Look at the jaw line between Michaels and Parker." He let his fingers wander over Garcia's computer screen as he talked. "They have the same zeugmatic arch and the same ears. The nose and the eyes have been changed, but -"

"Are you saying what I think you are?" Morgan said.

"Yes… Michaels and Parker are related. Garcia, can you use your age progression program and turn it around so we can see what these two might look like as kids."

"Sure…"

The entire room went silent except for Garcia's finger on the key board. New images popped up on her screen and Morgan whistled. "They're brothers."

"This doesn't prove anything." Detective Sand commented. "A judge would kick me out of his courtroom if I bring this in on its own."

"She's right! We need DNA."

Garcia's computer beeped. "Finally… I've never had so much trouble breaking a seal on public records. Someone didn't want us to see this."

They read over her shoulder. "Well it looks like you were right Reid. They are brothers. Michaels was twenty years older than Mason Parker, who's real name is Jeremy Michaels. They have different mothers but the same father." Garcia read aloud. Brandy Carroll met Harvey Michaels after his wife divorced him when Gary was nineteen years old. His little brother was born two years later. He was nine years old when he died. Why is he after Reid and his dad?" She asked Hotch.

"I don't know yet."

"You have some theories though." The detective asked.

"Yes… I think he may have somehow witnessed his brother's death. He wouldn't have known that Michaels was under suspicion for the Riley murder by Lou Jenkins and Detective Hyde because it was never made public. He's pursuing a path of revenge that he shouldn't know to take unless he has inside knowledge about the crime."

"What do we do now?" Garcia asked.

Reid's phone beeped again. "This is Dr. Reid." He answered calmly recognizing the number on the caller ID. What? When? No… I'm here in Las Vegas on a case. I can be there in thirty minutes."

He slapped his phone shut. "That was Bennington. My mother went missing a few hours ago. They don't know how she got out of the building. I have to go Hotch."

"Emily… Go with him."

"Excuse me." The detective pushed Martinez out of her way. "We're in the middle of a case."

"My team will fill you in detective. Just know that my mother is part of this."

He grabbed his bag and left with Emily on his heels.

"Will someone tell me what's going on?" Detective Sand demanded.

William flinched when the door to the grubby little kitchen opened when Hank entered the room. "You have a visitor," He said, smirking at he lawyer still dressed only in the same pair of filthy white cotton boxers.

The thug that had removed William from his prison to another less dirty prison dragged someone into the room.

"Dianna!"

"William… Why are these men here? Why aren't you dressed? What's going on? Tell these government thugs I want to see my son."

"They're not from the government Dianna. They kidnapped me because of Riley Jenkins."

The larger thug pushed Dianna into a chair they'd place next to William. He tied her hands behind her back.

"I told you not to touch me young man. I'm a professor at UNLV. I'll have a chat with your Dean."

"You're crazy you bitch. Shut up and stay still." The thug slapped her so hard her head flew back on her shoulders.

"Stop it!" William shouted as Dianna began to cry.

"Or what, you'll kill me." He taunted William.

"No… I'll let my son kill you when he finds us."

The big man laughed throwing his head back in glee. "You sound so confident."

"I am… There's no one better than Spencer. He'll find us."

"Yes he will," Dianna said as a bit of blood dripped over her chin from her mouth. "My son won't rest until he arrests you young man."

Someone began clapping as they entered the kitchen. "Bravo Mrs. Reid. Your faith in your son is utterly magical. Still… It's taking him longer than I thought to figure it out. I left him so many clues."

"Why don't you just tell us why we're here?"

"William… I'm so disappointed in you. I thought you would've figured it out by now. I guess you're not as smart as your son is. Did he get his brains from you?" He asked Dianna.

"Don't you talk to her?" William shouted.

"No matter…" Mason said, ignoring William. "We'll all be together soon. One big happy family."


	16. The White Queen

**_Disclaimer: See my profile_**

**_a/n hey all! Here's the next chapter. Please enjoy _**

**_The White Queen_**

"I'm driving!" Emily grabbed the keys from Reid's hands.

"No… You don't know the way." He argued as they got off the elevator at the ground floor of the field office.

"Program it in the GPS if you have to." She insisted. "You're not driving."

"Why are we arguing about this?"

"Because you're upset, I can see that. I don't blame you but I need you to keep your head together."

"Mason Parker did this." He said getting into the passenger side of the SUV he'd rented with Rossi.

"You don't know that!"

"Who else could've pulled this off?"

The sun had begun its fiery descent into the desert when they pulled out onto the street from the garage. He pulled on his sunglasses against the glare, happy to hide behind them.

"We can't assume anything Reid. You know better then that."

He ignored her and stared out the window. First his father and now his mother, he should've seen this coming. He should've alerted her doctor. How could he have missed the fact that everyone involved with Riley Jenkins was a target? Why had he let his feelings for his dad, cloud his judgment.

"This isn't your fault?"

"Emily… You've said that before to me and you were right, I know that now."

"So…"

"This time you're wrong it's my fault. I shouldn't have let my feelings for my dad get in the way of logic."

"So what… you think if this case were just another anonymous person, you would've known that Mason Parker was Gary Michael's brother from the first minute."

"That's not what I'm saying."

"Then what are you saying."

"I should've paid more attention."

Emily looked over at him out of her dark sunglasses. He looked back and wondered what she was thinking. A part of him wanted to believe her that it was his fault, but he knew better.

Dr. Norman stood waiting for Reid as he and Emily entered Bennington twenty-eight minutes later. The white face of Dianna Reid's son had his stomach churning. This shouldn't be happening to either of them.

"Dr. Reid." He held out his hand.

"This is SSA Emily Prentiss, a member of my team. Emily, this is my mother's doctor Edward Norman."

"It's nice to meet you Agent Prentiss."

"And you too," She shook his hand with surprising strength. "What can you tell us about Dianna Reid?"

"She was in the activity room all morning writing in her journal. She's writing a book." He looked up at Reid. "Did you know that?"

"No?"

Dr. Norman forced himself to ignore the tears that had entered Reid's tone. He watched Emily reach over and touch the young man's arm briefly. Then she turned her dark eyes on him with a look that clearly said. "He's devastated, make it stop." Then the look was gone.

"Yes… She's turned your cases into a series of short stories about modern Knights of the Round Table thrown back into medieval times. She's let me read some of them and they are quite good."

"Dr. Norman… Can you tell us the rest of her movements?" He asked, changing a subject that was obviously painful.

"Right… She went up to her room after lunch. I went in to speak to her two hours later and she was gone. I think I might know how she got out of here."

"What is it?"

Even though Dr Norman had only seen Dr. Reid a few times in the last four years, he could see that the young man held on by a thread. How much could one person take before they crumble like over-toasted bread?

"There's one member of the staff missing. His name is Raul Suarez Del Toro. He was hired here about a month ago."

"Did you do a background check on him?" Emily asked.

Dr Norman felt a twinge of annoyance at the question even though he knew Dr. Reid had to ask them. "Yes… We put all of our people through extensive background checks. He passed them all with flying colors. He was born in California. He went to school to become a nurse. He got along very well, especially with your mother. He loved books, couldn't get enough of them."

"It sounds like he targeted her." Emily said.

He watched Dr. Reid jerk at this comment and saw the look Emily gave him. He cleared his throat and spoke to the young agent. "I don't think he came here with the intention of harm."

"Did you find anything in her room?" Emily asked.

"Yes… It's the oddest thing I've ever seen. I didn't touch it. Come with me."

He led them from the small reception area through two large wooden doors that needed a code to access them. The hallway just past the entry way muffled their steps with chocolate brown carpeting. The walls were painted light beige that he sometimes found a bit depressing even if it was meant to be warm.

They turned left and climbed up several steps to the second floor by passing the day room. He noticed Reid's body automatically turns in that direction as if his mother might be in there, that all of this was a terrible mistake. He saw the young man right his path nearly without a hitch in stride.

"Her room is down at the end of this wing of the hospital." He said to Reid even though he knew the young man knew exactly where the room was located.

Her room was strangely empty as he led the agents inside. For years he'd become accustomed to entering and seeing her there in a chair near the window, reading, looking at picture albums, or writing in her journal.

"There it is…" He pointed to her neatly made bed and the pillow sitting in the middle as though someone had dropped it there.

A chessboard lay there with the pieces arranged as if the game were over. The white king stood directly in the middle of the board surrounded by black pieces. The white queen was missing. "I don't see the queen," Emily said thoughtfully as she snapped on gloves.

"The crime scene people were here. They took pictures and dusted for prints. I asked them to leave this here as it was for you to see it."

Reid bent over the chess set for a long minute. No one spoke as he studied the board. The silence in the room became like a heavy blanket holding Dr. Norman down and smothering him with its power.

"He's telling me he has her." Reid looked over at Emily, his hoarse voice breaking the silence like a hammer on glass. "He doesn't want us to look elsewhere."

"Who?"

Dr. Norman looked from one to the other as they stared at each other. They looked like they were talking without speaking. It was an odd sensation to witness.

Reid seemed to notice Dr. Norman for the first time. "You know what happened the last time I was here."

"Yes… your mother told me. It's the only way I'd let her leave the building with your father."

Reid flinched, but his voice stayed steady. "Somehow, Gary Michaels' brother either witnessed what happened to him or he put the pieces together. He's out there! Picking off the people one by one that had anything to do with his brother's death."

"I see… What can I do to help?"

"I need to get another member of my team on this. She'll do a through background check on Suarez Del Toro."

"We already -"

Reid interrupted him as he pulled out his phone. "I know Dr. Norman. I don't blame you or Bennington for my mother's disappearance. There's only one person I blame."

Dr. Norman almost lost the battle against flinching back from the anger in the young man's eyes. "Alright… I'm going to talk to the nurse on duty. Perhaps she knows something that will help us."

Garcia punched the incoming light on her phone with a pounding heart. "Hey sweet cheeks…"

"Garcia… I need you to do a run on Raul Suarez Del Toro."

"Give me a minute…"

Her fingers flew over her beloved keyboards probing into anything that had the name in public record. Information popped up on her screen as fast as her eyes could process it. Then…

"I found something you're not going to like handsome."

"What?"

"Raul Suarez Del Toro had a clean record until he came to Las Vegas a year ago. He's got some hefty gambling debts. It looks like a case of sheltered boy come to city of Sin and got into a lot of trouble."

"Let me guess… He owes markers to Mason Parker. He must have had his people get into his records so that the background check didn't pop up a flag about his debts."

"It would be easy if you know what you're doing." Garcia said.

"Only if you are you," He said.

"Thanks for the compliment baby cakes, but there are other hackers out there that are as good or better then me, as much as it pains me to admit that.

"Thanks Garcia…"

"No problem sweet thing. You hang in there. We're going to find your parents and everything will be okay."

She hung up her phone, hoping that she hadn't just made a promise she couldn't keep to her best friend.

"Was that Dr. Reid?" Gabriella asked.

"Yeah… I need you to help me find out everything we can on a Raul Suarez Del Toro. I want to be able to tell Dr. Reid what side of the bed he sleeps on and the name of his high school history teacher."

"Yes ma'am…" Martinez saluted.

"I wish the rest of the team recognized my superiority." Garcia added half kidding, half-serious.

"Come on… Let's get hacking." Gabriella said.

Reid's phone rang as soon as he disconnected with Garcia. "Dr. Reid… I trust you've made it to Bennington." A voice said that he didn't recognize.

"Who are you?"

"What is it Reid?" Emily said.

"Call Garcia." he mouthed silently. "Trace back this call."

"I'm surprised you don't know who I am."

"Okay… You want to play games!" Reid said. "Fine… I'm talking to Mason Parker."

"You disappoint me Dr. Reid. I'd have thought you'd have discovered my true name by now."

"I know who you are. You're Gary Michael's brother."

"Very good!"

"I want to speak to my mother!"

"No! I don't think so. You have two hours to find me and come alone."

"You know I can't do that."

"Don't disappoint me Dr. Reid." Mason Parker barked into the phone. "You're mother and father wouldn't like it."

"Don't touch them…" Reid began, but the connection had been broken."

"Reid!" Emily grabbed his arm.

"What?"

"Garcia traced your call. We have an address on Mason Parker."

"Give me the address."

"No… You're not going after him alone." She said. "We're getting back up."


	17. Pain

**_Disclaimer: see my profile_**

**_A/n hey all... Hope you're having a good weekend. Here's the next part of the story. _**

**_Pain _**

"He told me to come alone." Reid said as he hurried down the hallway.

His knee ached badly, forcing him to limp as they turned the corner to the stairway. The pain radiated up his leg as though someone had climbed into his skin and poked hot knives into the knee.

"Reid… Hotch won't let you go alone and you know it." She grabbed his arm just as he approached the first riser on the steps.

"I have to go alone." He repeated as though repetition would make his case for him. He yanked his arm out of her grasp, ignoring the angry scowl on her face.

She grabbed him again hanging on so tightly he thought he might lose the blood supply to his shoulder. "I'm not letting you out of here." She growled.

"You don't have a choice!" His eyes blazed in a way she had never seen.

"No… You don't have a choice. We're your family too Reid. We want to help you."

"I don't want your help," Once again, he ripped his arm away from her grasp, nearly tearing his light blue dress shirt sleeve in the process

He started down the stairs in a limping gait that resembled the shambling walk of Frankenstein in an old black and white horror movie.

"I have the keys… Or did you forget that little fact." She spat out at him as they hit the first floor.

A nurse, staffing the station near the door, looked over at them with a disapproving air. Reid recognized her from his last visit as someone that had always been good to his mother. He faked a smile at her. She had a look of confusion, but she didn't speak, as he was sure she'd been wanting to.

Reid held up the keys, letting them swing back and forth. "You mean these?"

"So you're picking pockets now."

"Whatever works? You shouldn't have put them in your jacket pocket."

"So that makes it okay, my putting the keys in the pocket." She stopped in front of him, making him halt inches from her.

"The rental car's in Rossi's name. I was just taking back what belongs to him."

Emily put her hands on her hips. "I don't think Rossi cares. Don't use him as an excuse to act like a jackass."

"Get out of my way!"

"No!" She shouted.

"Is there a problem?"

The both looked around at a very large black man in dark blue scrubs. He had a stethoscope around his neck and his arms crossed over his chest. His head was as bald as Morgan's and he had the same build as his friend and partner.

"No problem!" Reid snapped.

"Good… Because I don't want to call security."

Emily smiled up at the big man. "We're really sorry for making so much noise. We were just leaving."

They left the building in silence. Reid's head had begun to thump in time with his knee by the time he got to the SUV and climbed in. Emily got into the passenger side. She put a gentle hand over his fingers when he tried to start the engine.

"Spencer…" She said softly. "Please let us help you."

He looked over at her in the blue and purple twilight. "I don't want anything to happen to my family."

"Family takes care of each other." She said in the same low tone while caressing his hand. It was oddly soothing.

"He's taken too much already." He said, feeling the pain in his leg thump in time with his headache. "Lou Jenkins, Detective Hyde, and now Angie. He's got my parents and if I don't do exactly as he says, he'll kill them."

"He wants to kill them anyway Reid. You know that!"

He let her hold his hand because it took some of the edge off his headache. "I know… He wants them dead along with me. He's on a mission to avenge his brother. In a way I understand…"

"How can you understand?" She asked as the sky continued to darken outside the cab of the SUV.

"Because he was a child when his older brother was murdered for revenge."

"He was a pedophile? You saw his rap sheet."

Reid took his eyes off her and gently untangled his hand from her fingers. "Be that as it may, Michaels went after other little boys because he didn't want to hurt his brother. It's classic behavior.

"It all comes back to family." Emily said.

"Yeah… It all comes back to family. Michaels found a victim other than his brother when his urges overwhelmed him. My mother said she knew by looking at him that he was a danger to me. She said a mother knows. My family broke down under the strain of my parents' secrets and my mother's illness."

"Yes, but your family in the BAU will always stand behind you."

He looked back at her again, feeling some of the weight lift off his shoulders. However screwed up his biological family might be he could always count on his BAU family.

"Are you sure you're up to doing this? Your knee's aching isn't it?"

"Yeah… I have a bottle of Tylenol in my hotel room. If we hurry we can stop in there." He said, turning the key in the ignition.

"This is the second time we've argued about you running off on your own." Emily said in a teasing tone. "I hope it's the last time."

He looked over at her and smiled for the first time in the last hour. "Me too SSA Prentiss…"

"Let's get going Dr. Reid. Time's a wasting and we have a lot to plan."

He backed the SUV out of its parking spot and headed for the exit. It was time to get to work and end this thing once and for all.

* * *

William Reid began moving his arms up and down as soon as his captor left him alone. The ropes tightened around his chest for a minute before they began to loosen.

"What's going on William?" Dianna asked.

She'd stopped crying. Even though she had a bruise forming under her eye from Mason Parker hitting her, she was staying very calm. She sat across from him on the other side of the kitchen. Mason has tied her up much like William in his chair.

"Don't worry Dianna. I'm almost free of my ropes. I'll get us out of here." He moved his arms up and down like a piston, trying to drag the rope up over his fingers.

"Where are we going to go?" She asked. "Where's Spencer? He called me and said that he'd come visit me. He said you were in trouble."

"The man that brought you in here is a killer. He's responsible for the death of a colleague of mine. He has something to do with Riley Jenkins."

He pulled his left hand free of the ropes. Thank God he'd decided to pay attention when Spencer used to practice escapism as part of his love of magic. If he could just get his other arm free he could get to Dianna.

The ropes tightened again across his chest and around his legs. He been trussed up like a turkey and his legs were starting to go numb. The hemp of the robe rubbed painfully on the bare skin of his legs and chest. Still the pain had to be endured. If he could get free, perhaps they could find some way to contact Spencer and warn him of Mason Parker's plans.

"Riley Jenkins…" Dianna said. "Spencer solved that case. Why does this man care?"

"I don't know for sure. My colleague left me a file in a safety deposit box a few weeks ago. It had to do with Mason Parker laundering money. Now I'm thinking that was a diversion from his real purpose."

The ropes abruptly loosened around his chest and tightened around his thighs and groin. Oh well… It wasn't like he had to worry about damaging his privates as he'd lived the last twenty years without a woman. The only woman he'd ever loved despite leaving her, sat across from him.

"Why are you looking at me like that?" Dianna said.

"You always speak your mind. Spencer gets that from you."

"What good does it do to stay silent?" She asked.

"Yeah… you're right about that. I was thinking about the first time we met."

"I don't remember." She said in a bland way that hurt him horribly. It was the medicine he knew, but it still hurt.

"You were so beautiful then, but not as beautiful as you are now."

"Don't be absurd William. We're tied up by a madman."

"Not anymore!' He pulled off the ropes, untied his feet and stood up. His legs were almost completely numb. He nearly fell when he attempted to take a step. He picked up one of his feet and stamped it trying to get the circulation back.

"Are you alright?" Dianna asked.

"Give me a minute to get the blood flowing. He's had me in a tiny little underground room for… Actually I don't know what day it is."

"I think it's Sunday." Dianna said, but she looked as confused as he felt.

"It doesn't matter."

He felt the pain of circulation coming back into his limbs. The pins and needles itched, but at least he could move and not fall over. He shook out both legs, trying to speed along the process to full use. The fact that he could stand after two days of confinement in that dark and dirty hole was amazing to him. Finally, he took a hesitant step forward, feeling the filthy tile floor under his feet as very solid. He hurried around the table to Dianna and began working on the tight knots in her ropes.

"I wanted to tell you again I'm sorry." He said to her.

"You've said that at least once a year since Spencer committed me. You don't have to keep saying it William. What's done is done and what's past is past."

He freed her arm and she reached out to cup his face in her hand. "You gave me Spencer." She said, tears coming into her eyes. "I didn't give you anything but misery for sixteen years before you left me."

"No…." He said, reaching up to touch her once abundant blond hair with his trembling fingers. "You gave me more joy than I'd ever known. I was the weak one Dianna. I was jealous of my own son. Both of you should hate me. I wouldn't blame you."

"We don't hate you." She said as he finished with her bonds. "I don't love you the same way I did William, but I'll always care for you."

"And I for you," He said helping her to her feet. "Lets get out of here and maybe we can salvage something with our son."

"I'd like that." She said.

He clasped her hand and they headed to the kitchen door. The door opened before they could reach it and Mason Parker stepped in with a gun trained on them. "Oh very good… The loving couple has bonded over a regrettably short escape attempt. I'm so sorry you'll be staying here until your son arrives. I'm happy to say he's on his way."


	18. One Big Happy Family

**_Disclaimer: see my profile_**

**_A/n hello all... Here's the next chapter for my faithful readers. Thanks to you all for your kind support. _**

**_One Big Happy Family_**

"I don't like this." Captain Pemberton said.

"I don't care what you don't like." Morgan began, getting in the Captain's face. "You refused to help Dr. Reid when he came to see you about his father."

"I was following established protocol." The big man pushed a large finger into Morgan's chest.

"Screw protocol!" Morgan growled. "You refused to help because your detective was involved in the cover up of a murder. You blame William Reid and my partner for shattering your safe little world where your men don't make mistakes."

"That's not true. I know my men aren't perfect."

"Stop it!" Hotch got between the two men. "We have less than an hour before William and Dianna Reid is dead. Do you want to be responsible for that Captain?"

"Get control over your watch dog Agent," Captain Pemberton stepped back from Hotch. "One of my detectives is dead. I'm in on this whether or not you like it."

"Count me in too…," said Detective Sand.

"We need all the help we can get." Reid said entering his living area from the bathroom.

"Did you take something for your leg?" Hotch asked.

"Are you sure he should be going?" Morgan asked. "He can barely walk."

"Don't go there Morgan." Reid said. "I'm the one Parker wants. I'm going in."

"Leave it alone Morgan…" Hotch said. "Garcia," He called to the tech who worked at her laptop. "You and Reid get to work on what we talked about.

The tech left her desk in swish of bright orange and yellow cotton. "Come on baby cakes… Martinez and I have something in mind for you." She grabbed one arm while Martinez took the opposite arm. "This won't hurt a bit." The agent said as they pulled him into his bedroom.

"What is it with him and women? Morgan said to Rossi.

"He doesn't know his own appeal. Women like that." Rossi said dryly.

"There's no accounting for taste." Morgan said with a grin.

"Come on you two… Let's go over the plan with the locals." Hotch said as they congregated around the huge coffee table.

* * *

Three SUVs sped to the edge of Las Vegas and out into the desert. Reid had the driver's side window open so that the cooling air of night washed over him and ruffled his hair. He had taken the lead in this little convoy, convincing Hotch that he had to go alone. Now he wished, as he watched the yellow lines on the black top race by in the yellow glow of his headlights, that he had someone in the car with him. If he had someone to talk to then he could keep his mind off the fact that he was running straight into a situation over which he had no control.

He looked back at the pair of headlights following him. Absurdly, the memory of a television show he'd watched months ago popped into his head. The name of the show was, "The Scariest Places on Earth." One story had to do with a lonely stretch of highway and people who had encountered someone in a vehicle chasing them in the dark. As the legend went, the car would appear out of nowhere, flash its lights, and ride the bumper of its target. The road had many twists and turns so the accident and fatality rate were very high. The locals believed the stretch of road was haunted.

He shook his head and forced his eyes back onto the road. Morgan, not some real or imagined maniac or demon, drove the SUV behind him. He had nothing to fear from the friends that followed him into the lion's den. They would always have his back. In all of his life, no one had ever stuck by him like his BAU family. Even so, he wanted more than ever to have his mother and father back in his life. He swore he would take his father's phone calls and respond to the emails he sent. He put aside his hate and all the bad feelings he nurtured in his soul because of his father's abandonment.

Gravel pinged under the truck as he took the first turnoff ten miles outside of Las Vegas twenty minutes later. The trucks raised enough dust in the moonlight that they resembled some kind of ghostly mechanical carriages from some far off place in another time. He rounded the first turn in the road as instructed by the GPS unit in the truck and shut off his headlights. Luckily, for them the moon was full that night. They were getting close only another mile or so. He looked back and saw only black night behind him. It was as if the ghost from the television show had followed him, led him astray and then left him to find his way back out of Hell.

* * *

"Please just let her go and I'll stay here with you for as long as you want." William pleaded with his captor.

"I don't think so… Watching you suffer is what I've lived for."

He suddenly whipped around and backhanded William as hard as he could. William's head flew back and hit the edge of the headrest. The resounding crack was like a bone snapping in half. Blood flew out of William's nose and splattered on his chin and his shoulders.

Parker strode over to Diana and put his gun to her head. "I should kill her right now. It's her fault that my brother is dead."

He tangled his free hand into her hair and yanked her head back. "You crazy bitch. You should've kept your lying mouth shut."

He let go of her hair and turned the gun back on William. "Or should I kill you for believing your crazy wife. Anyone else would have dismissed her as a raving lunatic. You should've kept better control over her instead of letting her ramble on to anyone who would listen."

He reached down and yanked her head back into his stomach. The hand that held his gun placed it back on her temple. "Women should be seen and not heard! You let them talk and all they do is lie to you." He screamed.

"Stop it." William screamed as silent tears began dripping down Dianna's cheeks.

"When are you going to see that I have the control here, not you?" Mason said in a suddenly reasonable tone. In fact, he reminded William of some of his speeches at various charity functions.

Mason pulled the gun away from Diana and went to the cracked and greasy counter top. He leaned back against it like they were about to have a conversation as three old friends might at a friendly barbecue.

"You just don't get it do you William Reid. My brother was innocent. I stood there in that house and watched Lou Jenkins beat him to death with a baseball bat. I was nine God-damn years old."

He smiled a terrible smile as his two large cohorts just stood there with their guns on the Reids. They listened to him speak as though they'd heard the same story a million times. They were bored and it showed. They didn't seem to care that their boss appeared to be coming apart at the seams.

William watched Mason swipe the sweat away from his forehead as he spoke about all the blood and how Diana had come into the house to find Lou standing over his brother.

"I was hiding around the corner, sticking my head out as though I might get shot. If he'd seen me, he might have taken me out to. I was so scared. I didn't know what was going on. Gary was so much older than I was. He came to see me at my mother's house as often as he could, but they fought all the time. She didn't want him around me. She thought he was a bad influence on me because he couldn't keep a job."

"He was a pedophile." Dianna said, through her tears. "He was going to hurt my son."

"Shut up…" Mason said calmly.

He appeared to have pulled his emotions back into line for the time being. William shook his head at Dianna and she fell silent.

"No one understood Gary like I did. He was so much older than I was, but we understood each other. He was my friend. He took care of me when my mother would get drunk and beat me up."

"Mason…" William began. "He turned his attention to other little boys because he loved you. He didn't want to molest you because he cared about you. Spencer wrote in a paper once that pedophiles often redirect their desires to molest a family member because of guilt."

"My brother never touched me!" Mason screamed.

He pushed off from the edge of the counter and shoved his gun into William's bare back right at the base of his skull.

"Say that again Mr. Reid and I won't wait for your son to get here before I splatter your brain all over your ex-wife's pretty face."

William did his best not to flinch at the cold steel against the back of his neck. His son had faced death without flinching more than once. He could at least show an attempt at that same kind of strength.

_You can do better than that. _

"You won't kill either of us. You've made it very clear that you want all of us together before you kill one of us. You blame Spencer above all of us because he was a child. Dianna sensed what Gary was -"

"Don't say his name."

Mason dug the gun into the back of William's neck. He hissed in at the pain that blossomed along his neck and shoulder blades. "Diana knew what your brother was… She saw it in his eyes. She was protecting our son. Surely you have to understand how -"

"My brother wasn't a monster."

He left William and went back to Dianna. "I should make you suffer the way you made me suffer." He cocked the gun and the sound was like ice cracking in an icy artic world.

* * *

Reid held his gun and the small flashlight he carried out in front of him. His hand shook more than he'd like, but he couldn't stop the pounding of his heart and the instinct to run instead of walking into danger.

He passed a table covered with thick dust to his left. He avoided walking into it by just a few inches. He wiped at his forehead with the back of his left wrist. The hand held the flashlight so the abrupt change in perspective showed him a ceiling with large swaths of tile missing. He could see into the rafters. Something squeaked… He jerked his hand down just as a rat ran past the hole in the ceiling. He came so close to screaming he felt his vocal cords tighten. He coughed and began to sneeze.

Nothing in the house moved except for more squeaking rats that he couldn't see. Then a voice drifted out to him that sounded familiar. He stopped, letting his light rest on the stained white door in front of him. It looked like an old swinging door in someone's kitchen. A bit of yellow light seeped out around the door and from under it as he listened.

His father's voice drifted out to him. "… Your brother was… She saw it in his eyes. She was protecting our son. Surely you have to understand how -"

"My brother wasn't a monster." Another voice said that had the hair standing up on the back of his neck as sweat ran done his back into the top of his dress pants.

"I should make you suffer the way you made me suffer!"

Reid heard the cocking of a gun and fought done the urge to panic. He took in a breath and opened the door with his gun. "Hello…" He said with as much confidence as he could muster. "I think you're all waiting for me."

The room Reid had entered was a filthy kitchen. He barely noticed the décor though… His mother and his father sat in chairs across from each other with their hands on a dusty, wooden table. His mother looked up at him and amazingly she smiled at him as though he'd just come to Bennington. He tried to smile back, but he just couldn't make his mouth turn up at the edges.

"Welcome Dr. Reid," said the tall, blonde, handsome man with piercing blue eyes. "You disappoint me. I thought you'd figure things out just a little faster." He held up his hand with the forefinger and thumb less than an inch apart.

"Sorry to keep you waiting."

"Better late then never," Mason smirked. "Now that you're here we can get down to business."


	19. The Black King

**_Disclaimer: see my profile_**

**_A/n here's the next chapter my friends. _**

**_The Black King_**

Reid heard the cocking of a gun and fought down the urge to panic. He took in a breath and opened the door with his gun. "Hello…" He said with as much confidence as he could muster. "I think you're all waiting for me."

The room Reid had entered was a filthy kitchen. He barely noticed the décor though… His mother and his father sat in chairs across from each other with their hands on a dusty, wooden table. His mother looked up at him and amazingly she smiled at him as though he'd just come to Bennington. He tried to smile back, but he just couldn't make his mouth turn up at the edges.

"Welcome Dr. Reid," said the tall, blonde, handsome man with piercing blue eyes. "You disappoint me. I thought you'd figure things out just a little faster." He held up his hand with the forefinger and thumb less than an inch apart.

"Sorry to keep you waiting."

"It's okay. Now that you're here we can get down to business."

"I had other things to deal with, like the death of Angela Beauvais." Reid said, a hard edge entering his voice as he spoke.

Mason's eyebrows went up into his forehead. "Is that rage I hear in your voice little man? I was right, she did get to you."

"You used her to make a point to me. She was just a way for you to show me your power."

Mason grinned. "You're right in one Dr. Reid. Very good... Still, I would've thought you'd make it out here just a bit faster. I've grown bored waiting for you to show up." A hard edge entered his voice with this last statement.

"Why did you come here?" William piped up to Reid. "You should have stayed away."

"Dad! You lost the right to tell me what to do a long time ago."

William's dark eyes held nothing but sorrow as he looked up at his son. Reid didn't see the disapproval in them that he was used to seeing from his childhood. There was only fear and the possibility of loss now. It churned in his heart in a way he hadn't felt in a very long time.

"Spencer… You shouldn't talk to your father like that." His mother said.

"Mom… Please, I need to get control of this before Mr. Parker starts shooting." He said as though the other man wasn't in the room with them.

"Oh don't trouble yourself... I have all the time in the world." Mason said with glee in his voice. "We're all one big happy family!" It was as though this were some kind of bizarre birthday party. "Now that we're all together we can get on with the business at hand. Dr. Reid… Why don't you stand next to your father?"

Parker turned to the silent goons standing guard over Spencer's parents. He gestured to the door. "Get out of here and leave us alone."

"I don't think that's a good idea," Said the smaller, graying, pot bellied man who carried a fifty-caliber handgun in his right hand.

"I don't care what you think Hank. You have served your purpose and you have the money I promised you. The Reids are mine to deal with, so get out of here now."

The two men left the room through another door next to the scarred and pitted cabinetry that lined the walls above a space where there must have been a stove at one time.

After they left, Mason smiled at Reid again and indicated his father. "Please…." He asked politely.

Reid let his gun drift down at the dirty and dingy white tile floor that was cracked and missing in some places. He went to his father as Mason had ordered him. His shoes squeaked on the dust and dirt as he moved. The sound reminded him of the rats in the ceiling when he'd entered the room.

William looked up at him with total trust that sent shivers up Reid's arm and across his back. He tried to make his father see through his eyes that his harsh words were just for effect. William nodded his head imperceptibly and Reid let out a tiny sigh.

"Your son doesn't seem to be all that happy to see you William." Mason said from his place at the cracked and warped counter. "Tell me Dr Reid… What did your father do to you to make you hate him so much, apart from the obvious abandonment?"

"Put down your gun and maybe I'll tell you."

"I don't think so!" Mason's hand hadn't moved or trembled in the last hour. "Why don't you bring your gun to me instead, Spencer?"

"Let's just talk about your brother." Reid changed the subject.

Mason crossed one leg in front of the other and smirked at Reid. "So you finally figured it all out."

"Yes… Gary Michael's was your brother. You hid your ownership of this place behind a corporate blind called Jenkins Inc. That wasn't very smart."

"Spencer!" His father admonished, shifting in his chair.

"Don't move William." Their captor said.

"Stay still Dad. I can handle this." Reid said never taking his eyes off Mason.

"You sound so official and FBI, Dr. Reid. I know it's just bravado. Agent Morgan's the muscle of your operation and he isn't here to save your skinny butt this time."

Reid let a smile drift over his face as he maintained the casual stance of someone talking to his or her best friend. "I'm surprised you'd sink to taunts Parker. I lived through the Las Vegas Public School System. Nothing you can say to me is going to hurt my feelings."

Mason grinned right back at him as he stared at Reid over his mother's head. He moved away from the counter and put the barrel of his gun at the back of Dianna's head. She sat up straight, looking up at Reid with the kind of trust that burned because he couldn't let her down.

"I don't believe you! I think they hurt more than you want to admit. Still… I'm not here to discuss your likely emotional damage because of your childhood. It's time to say goodbye to your precious mother."

"NO!" William rose out of his chair nearly knocking Reid into the table.

"Sit down William!" Mason shouted.

All of the playful attitude in his bearing disappeared as Reid took his father's arm and pushed him back into his chair. He shook his head almost imperceptibly.

"Let's all just calm down and talk about this." Reid said. He lifted his gun back up to point at Parker.

"I don't think so… I'm done waiting to kill those responsible for my brother's death."

"I know… I have a deal for you." Reid said. "You want me to watch you kill my family. I want all of us to walk out of here."

"I'm the only one leaving here." Mason said, calm returning to his voice as his gun returned to the back of Dianna's head.

"Your brother wouldn't have wanted you to kill just to revenge his death. He stayed away from you because of his urges. He didn't want to hurt you. You can just walk away." He lowered his gun back to the ugly tile floor.

Mason threw back his head and laughed as though he'd just heard the best joke in his life. "You're attempts to talk me down, as it were, won't work. I'm on a course that I can't change."

"Why don't we play a game?" Reid said, "A simple game of draw poker. You win… you get to kill all of us. You lose and you get to kill me. I'm the one you really want Mason. If not for me and the temptation I posed to your brother, he might still be alive."

"Then what's to stop me from splattering your brains all over the wall?" Mason asked.

"You love to gamble. The last thing Angie said to me before she died was that you hate to lose. I didn't put it together right away, but you hate to lose. You gambled on your business making millions of dollars. The young man you hired to kidnap my mother owed you money on gambling debts. That's why you launder money through your tournament. You enjoy the challenge."

"You're right…" Mason agreed. He gestured to the chair at the head of the table. "You sit here and I'll sit at the foot of the table."

Reid sat down, put his gun on the table within reach and pulled a deck of card out of his pocket. "I anticipated needing these." He began to shuffle them expertly.

"Very good Dr. Reid. If I didn't have to kill you, I'd try to hire you for my blackjack table. I need a good man on the night shift."

Reid smiled back. "Thanks for the offer. I'm almost sorry I can't take you up on it. Did you know?" Reid changed the subject as he deftly cut the cards with one hand, "that in the 15th century, people played the earliest form of poker, a German game called Pochspiel? It involved cards, betting and bluffing."

"Very interesting Dr. Reid, but I think I'd rather you dealt the cards." He gestured away Reid who'd held out the deck to him. "I prefer to have both my hands on my gun."

"Suit yourself!"

Reid dealt out the hand so fast the cards became a blur. He picked up his hand and looked up at Mason, who smiled broadly. "I think I'll take two cards."

"Are you sure?"

"Don't pretend this is a friendly card game." Mason pointed his gun at William, rather than Reid.

"You shouldn't play this game with him." Dianna said. "He's a bad man. A mother knows." She reminded him.

"Shut up you crazy bitch…" Mason said calmly.

Reid gave him two cards, ignoring the exchange despite the hot rage drifting up from his chest. He took in a deep breath to dispel it and coughed on the smell of dust and rat droppings that permeated the room.

"Problem," Mason asked.

"No! Allergies! I just need one."

Mason raised his eyebrows. "Are _you_ sure?"

"Yes…"

Mason looked down at the cards in his free hands and back up at Reid who stared back at him while William and Dianna watched them from their seats.

"Show me what you have." Reid said.

Mason smirked as he put down his cards, "Full boat, queens over sixes."

"Well… It looks like you better open the door for my parents." Reid said laying down his cards. "I've got a full boat too, aces over eights, the dead man's hand."

Mason lost his self-satisfied smirk. "We're done playing Dr Reid."

"Yes we are." Reid stood at the same time the kitchen door opened on Morgan and Hotch. "It's over Parker."


	20. Checkmate

**_Disclaimer: see my profile_**

**_A/n here's the last chapter. Thanks to all my faithful readers, and to my wonderful beta who kept me sane and on track. I hope you all enjoyed this tale. _**

**_Checkmate_**

"Don't even think about it." Morgan said as he stepped carefully up to Mason who pointed his gun at William.

"Put your hands on your head." Reid said. "You're under arrest for the murders of Lily Camden and Detective David Hyde. Also, for conspiracy to murder Lou Jenkins, Angie Beauvais, for the kidnapping of William and Dianna Reid and money laundering, I'm sure the FBI will find a few interesting charges more to throw in the mix."

Mason put his hands on his head. "This isn't over Dr. Reid. I have friends on the outside and the inside that are loyal to me."

"If you mean the two jackasses we ran into a few minutes ago, they're already on their way to county lockup." Morgan said as he cuffed Mason's hands.

"You don't have any proof." Mason began to bluster as his smile returned. "It'll be my word against yours," he stated, confidently. "I'm a rich business man that employs hundreds of people. My lawyer will make mincemeat of you."

"Get him out of here." Hotch said as Morgan began muscling Parker to the door.

"Parker…" Reid called out.

Morgan's prisoner turned around despite Morgan's restraining hands. "What do you want?"

Reid pulled the recording device from its hiding place under his shirt. "You lose!"

Mason made to lunge at Reid but Morgan held him back. "Settle down!" He hissed through clenched teeth.

Reid turned his back on Mason ignoring the man's ranting about setups all the way down the hall from the over bright kitchen. "Mom…" He held out a hand and helped her to her feet.

"I'm so proud of you." She said, touching his cheek.

"Are you okay?" He pushed back the bangs from her eyes.

"Yes! Don't worry about me. You should worry about your father." She nodded in William's direction.

"I'm fine." His dad whispered as Reid looked at him. "Take care of your mother. We'll talk later."

"You need to talk now." Dianna admonished both of them. "I'd like to get back to my room if you don't mind." She said.

Reid hugged her tightly. At first, her arms didn't come around him, and then she embraced him hard. "You did well Spencer. I love you."

"I love you too mom." Reaction had begun to set in. He began to shake, trying to hold back the tears that wanted to roll out of his eyes.

"It's okay." She pulled back and smiled at him. "It's over for good this time."

"I can't believe you're okay." Reid said without thinking.

Dianna smiled sardonically. "I'm sure I'll wake up tomorrow and think this was all a dream." She said, "Or one of your adventures in a letter."

"I'll come see you tomorrow." Reid choked out. He looked back at JJ who stood just inside the door as though guarding the family from invasion. "Will you take my mother outside?"

"I'd love to," She smiled at Dianna. "Do you remember me Mrs. Reid?"

"Of course I do young lady. Spencer speaks about you all the time. You're the one who collects butterflies."

It was a testament to Reid's growth, and the stress of the situation, that he did not blush. JJ winked at him and took his mother's arm. "We've got some water in the SUV." She said to Dianna as they left the room.

Reid stood alone in the old kitchen with his father. William was watching him as he paced the length of the room. "Dad," he finally said. "Let's get out of here. You must be tired and -"

"Thank you son," William interrupted. "You came back to help when you didn't have to."

Reid stopped pacing and studied his father. William looked as though someone had rolled him in dirt. He had bruises on his face under his right eye and soil in his brown hair. It stuck up in all directions, the same way Spencer's did when he woke up in the morning.

"What are you thinking?" William asked as Reid sat down at the table.

Reid looked around at the kitchen instead of his father's eyes. If he could just get holds on all the emotions slamming around in his chest like tennis balls bouncing on a court.

"I guess I'm surprised."

William stretched out his bare legs under the table. "Why?" He asked curiously.

"You led me here. It was your clues. You remembered the code I made up as a child." Reid rubbed at his nose with the knuckles of his right hand. "I'm just surprised."

"You didn't think your old man was smart enough to be so cunning."

A flash of embarrassment made Reid's face go hot. "No! I mean yes… I mean…" He leapt up from his chair and started pacing the room again. "I just realized something that I should've known all along."

"What?"

Reid stopped in front of the sink. He couldn't face his father. It was too much all at once. "Everyone, when I was growing up, just thought of me and my mother as the smart ones in the family." He turned around to see his father watching him with kind eyes. "I'm sorry dad… I shouldn't have let people think that way. No," He held up a hand when William wanted to speak. "I should've recognized that you have brains too, just in a different way. It must have been hard for you to live with a kid that could outthink you."

William laughed.

Reid went scarlet. "Well… You know what I mean?"

"Yes I do." William finally stood up and limped slowly over to where Reid stood. "I was so jealous of you and your intelligence. I was jealous of your relationship with your mother. It's why I tried to force you to do stuff you didn't want to do. Please forgive me. I was weak."

"No dad," the tears that had been threatening for hours fell unchecked down his cheeks. "You're not weak. You survived here for the last three days. I can see that you're standing up right now through sheer force of will. You need to go to a hospital."

"I'm fine Spencer. It's nothing that a little rest, some food and perhaps a hug from my son might cure."

"I don't know if I'm ready for that yet dad." Reid kept his arms at his sides even though he wanted to embrace his father.

"I understand Spencer… I don't deserve forgiveness. Will you let me try to make it up to you?" He asked, leaning on a chair next to the table where Dianna had been sitting.

"Yeah…" Reid choked out. "I promise the next time you call, I'll answer unless I'm in the middle of a case. Then I might let it go to voicemail." He smiled and it felt good on his face and directed at his father.

"I can live with that son."

"Good… Now let's get you out of here."

One of the medics entered the kitchen at that moment. He draped a blanket over William's shoulders. He checked him over thoroughly. "He's got some contusions and a nice bump on the back of the head, but I think he'll be fine. Let's get him in the ambulance.

"I don't want to go to the hospital." William pushed away the medic's hands.

"He'll go!" Reid insisted.

"I'm fine," William tried to stand up. He swayed a bit and fell back in his chair.

"Oh you're fine." Reid said. "I want you to go to the hospital.

"Perhaps you're right," William allowed his son to take his arm, to bear some of his weight and to gently help lead out him of the place that had been his prison. It was a beginning.

* * *

William Reid knotted his tie and pulled on his suit jacket. The first real smile he'd felt in a long time made its way onto his face. He studied his appearance, hoping that the white shirt, dark brown tie and matching jacket would be appropriate for his first day back at work.

He went to the kitchen and put on a fresh pot of coffee. He looked up at the clock on the wall and fidgeted. Only fifteen minutes had passed since he'd last looked at the clock before going in to make his bed and change. Why did time seem to fly when you didn't want a moment to end, and drag when you wished it were over? Was there some kind of flaw in the human mind that made it impossible to see time as a constant? He sighed and chided himself for thinking that way.

A week had passed since his son had found him and saved him from death at the hands of a lunatic. He looked up at the clock just as the doorbell chimed. He jumped a little. The house had been just a little too quiet, but at least he had a visitor now.

"Hi…" He said when he opened the front door. "I'm glad you were able to come see me before you left."

Reid stepped into the house and followed his father into the now familiar living area of the house. There were no outward signs of the trauma that had brought the two men together.

"I wanted to say goodbye." Reid went to the small end table and picked up the photograph he'd noticed with Rossi. "We've finished tying up loose ends. It was a lot to go through, but we've picked up all of Parker's men and dismantled his organization."

"Are you upset that I have that here?" William asked noticing his son's interest in the picture.

"No… I noticed it when Rossi and I searched the house. It caught me off guard. I sort of dismissed it, but it's because I was so happy that you cared enough to have a photo out."

"Of course I do," William remarked in a very surprised tone. "I love you son. I want to see your face every day.

Reid twisted his tie between his fingers. "I don't know how I'm supposed to act. I'm not used to all of this." He swung out his arms wide. "I don't know what to do."

"I'm trying too hard." William said softly. "I'm sorry… I'm putting way too much pressure on you."

"No dad! I'm not trying hard enough. I want to leave everything behind, but I can't stop thinking about the last twenty years."

William put a hesitant arm around Spencer's shoulders, "Stop being so hard on yourself. All of this time in between now and then is my fault. We'll take this one step at a time."

Reid embraced his dad very quickly and stepped back. "I'll try."

"That's the best I can ask for." William led the way back to the kitchen. "Do you have time for coffee and to fill me in on the case? I want to know how your mother is doing too. Did you tell her I'm coming to see her soon?"

"Slow down dad." Reid laughed at his father's eagerness. "I don't have to be at the airport for a couple of hours and you're not due in to work until ten o'clock. We have time for a chat."

* * *

"How did the visit with your dad turn out?" Rossi asked Reid as the pilot announced they were about to take off.

Reid sipped his third cup of coffee that morning. He thought for a moment before answering because everyone was listening even if they pretended to be busy with other tasks.

"It went a lot better than I thought it would. The two hours passed so fast…" He shrugged his shoulders. "I didn't want to say goodbye."

"Good," Rossi said as he pulled out his file folder. "Are we safe in assuming that no more of Michaels' relatives will rear their ugly heads and threaten the Reid clan?"

Reid choked on his coffee as the rest of the team laughed. "I checked into it sir." Garcia said from behind her laptop. "He was the last of his family."

"Is it wrong to say woo-hoo?" JJ wanted to know.

"I think that's a very good idea." Emily said from the other side of Reid. "Should we worry though, that he's in prison. He can still communicate with any friends we may have overlooked."

"I wouldn't worry about it." Rossi said. "You know how the inmates in general population treat child molesters. The brother of one will probably suffer the same threats. In addition, he will have to contend with any friends Lou Jenkins may have made. They won't be happy with Parker for having him killed."

"How do we know he'll go to the same prison?" Reid asked.

Rossi looked over at Garcia who winked at him.

"What did you do Garcia?" Hotch asked.

"Um… I sort of hacked into the corrections main frame and assigned Mason Parker to the same prison, and general population."

"Garcia!" Hotch chastised, then he smiled and said. "Good work."

Garcia flushed pink, "Thank you sir, but I don't think it's a good idea for you to know that."

"I've gone temporarily deaf." Hotch said.

"Hey kid?" Morgan asked over the top of his coffee cup.

"What Morgan?"

"Did you get Martinez's phone number?"

The others stared at him except for Hotch, but a smile twitched at the unit chief's lips as he went back to reading a book instead of a file folder.

"I don't know what you're talking about." Reid said, looking out of the window at the blue sky and fluffy white clouds that seemed to carry the jet east on gossamer wings.

"Whatever man."

"If he didn't, I have it stored in my phone memory." Garcia added.

"Good one," Morgan said. "I knew I could count on you mama."

"If you two are finished," Hotch looked up from his book. "Some of us are trying to relax."

"Sorry sir," Garcia hid behind her laptop.

Reid went back to watching the clouds float past them. Mason Parker was safely in jail. His father and mother were finally safe from an evil that had stalked them for years and he… Well, he was seriously thinking about calling Gabriella when they landed in DC. After all, not everything that happened in Vegas had to stay in Vegas.

**_THE END_**


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